INSIDE GUANTANAMO EXCLUSIVE TO LEAD NGTI SLATE AT MIPTV

Published: 9 March 2009

National Geographic Television International (NGTI) today unveils its key programme launches for MipTV.

Leading the slate of more than 60 new hours is INSIDE GUANTANAMO (1x 90/1 x 52). Part verité film, part ground-breaking historical documentary, Inside Guantanamo takes an exclusive look at the world’s most famous – and controversial – prison, through the eyes of both current and past detainees and the military personnel that manage the facility. In the spotlight again since President Obama announced plans for its closure as one of his first actions in office, Guantanamo authorities allowed NGT unprecedented levels of access in order to produce this unique and hard-hitting programme.

History titles for this market include HEROD’S LOST TOMB (1 x 52), which reveals that one of the greatest villains in the Bible was also one of the greatest architectural masterminds of the ancient world and SECRETS OF SHANGRI-LA (1 x 52) – a NGT production for France 5 and PBS. In this latter film a team of explorers search for the fabled Shangri-La in Upper Mustang, a remote corner of Nepal, and find centuries-old manuscripts and stunning wall paintings in hard-to-reach cliff caves that have remained undisturbed for hundreds of years. NGTI is also pleased to announce four new independent productions in its natural history slate. These recent acquisitions are: ANIMALS ARE AMAZING, a three-hour animal behaviour series from BBC Motion Gallery; THE OCEAN’S SUPERMUM – A SEA LION’S ODYSSEY (1 x 52) from Content Mint Productions; WHALE PATROL (1 x 52) from Sea Dog Films and DEATH OF THE MEGABEASTS (1 x 85/1 x 52) from Prospero Productions. Death of the Megabeasts, made for France 5 and NGC, uses spectacular CGI to bring Australia’s prehistoric megafauna to life, while scientists conduct a ‘Cold Case’-style review to investigate the reasons behind their demise. New natural history titles produced by NGT include MYSTERY FISH OF THE CONGO and DARWIN’S LOST VOYAGE – both 1 x 52.

WORLD’S TOUGHEST FIXES (10 x 52) is a major new science series from NGT that follows host Sean Riley while he tackles some of the biggest mechanical problems around. Amongst other activities, we see him help repair the giant Trans Alaska Pipeline and take an adrenalin-fuelled climb up a 2000-ft antenna! Other new series for MipTV include the return of some favourites: ECO-ENGINEERING 2, looking at new green technologies, INTO THE WILDERNESS 3 (2 x 52), exploring two more of America’s great national parks and HISTORY’S SECRETS 3 (3 x 52) giving new insights to the stories behind the 2001 anthrax killer, pioneering pilot and Nazi sympathiser Charles Lindbergh and the mysterious D.B. Cooper, who leapt from a plane in 1971 with $200,000 strapped to his body and was never seen again....however, new clues to his identity have appeared and the FBI has re-opened the file. DOGTOWN is also back with five new hour-long episodes which follow a colourful cast of canine characters – often neglected or abandoned – as they get rehabilitated. One episode features the high-profile case of US football star Michael Vick, who had his 22 pitbulls confiscated due to negligence.

In addition to its documentaries, NGTI will also be debuting the recently announced I, DARWIN (1 x 110/2 x 52 mini series), its first ever fully-scripted drama. Produced by NGT, I, Darwin uses the Darwin Correspondence Project and leading scholarship to reveal a new story about the man and the theory – based on his own words.

Maurice van Sabben, president of NGTI comments: “In addition to the exciting new development with I, Darwin in drama, we are once again proud to represent a stunning new slate of excellent factual programming from NGT. We are also delighted to have established relationships with new independent producers ahead of this market and to find additional content that complements what we distribute from NGT. While we are all working in challenging times, I am confident that our mix of fascinating factual topics, coupled with great story-telling and the sort of access and exclusivity that only National Geographic’s trusted filmmakers and explorers can get, will ensure that our programmes remain as popular as ever when we launch them in Cannes.”