24 NATURAL HISTORY FOCUS NHNZ ur mission is to create world- class factual content for everyone to enjoy,” explains Kyle Murdoch, managing director of
GO BANANAS Both produced by NHNZ, Orangutan Jungle School and Wildlife Rescue have strong conservation themes and success is measured through broadcast ratings, online engagement with a partner or sponser or changes to laws
Natural History New Zealand (NHNZ). Originally a small natural history unit within New Zealand’s state-owned television network TVNZ, NHNZ has steadily expanded over 40-odd years. Today, it is an international production house with a reputation for innovation in storytelling, technology and integrity. In 1977, the wildlife unit that would become NHNZ had its beginnings in the days of TV One. In previous years, then- reporter Neil Harraway and cameraman Robert Brown had made short news items on the conservation of the kakapo (New Zealand’s flightless parrot) and takahē (a large indigenous flightless bird) in New Zealand’s Fiordland National Park. They convinced regional editor Alan Brady to fund a half-hour documentary on the kakapo in 1975. The team went on to gain executive approval to set up the Natural History Unit and hired Graeme Wilson as the unit’s first producer and Neil Harraway and Robin Scholes as its first directors. The Natural History Unit was renamed Natural History New Zealand Limited in 1997. Today, NHNZ not only works with the country’s state broadcaster, but with National Geographic Channels (including Nat Geo Wild), A+E Networks, CCTV, CICC, FOX, Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, Travel Channel, Science Channel, Smithsonian Channel, SVT, WNET, PBS, NHK, Choice TV, SMG, Arte, France Télévisions, CGTN, CITVC and ZooMoo.
REVEALING REALITIES Kyle Murdoch (pictured left) explains NHNZ’s mission: “Increasingly, we feel a responsibility to tell stories about the realities of climate change and the degradation of environments we film. We’ve made a living from telling stories about the planet’s most amazing environments and the changes we are witnessing today are real and potentially catastrophic. You could call this public education, but it’s also just showcasing reality. “We always try to do our best and be better citizens of the Earth, but the reality is our slate contains a mix of programming, some of which is entertainment-driven,
while others are more focused on environmental messaging. Two shows recently greenlit, Orangutan Jungle School and Wildlife Rescue , are both examples of shows that contain a mix of entertainment and conservation. Beneath the light- hearted scenes, the overall message is about species and environments in crisis.” Both of these shows have strong conservation themes and support the work of the Borneo Orangutan Survival (BOS) Foundation in Indonesia and the Dunedin Wildlife Hospital in New Zealand. “We feel lucky to have the opportunity to produce these entertaining shows, which can also support great organisations.”
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