ABC set to showcase Australian natural history in June – Over three weeks, from Tuesday 6 June, ABC TV and ABC iview will showcase three new, ground-breaking Australian natural history shows, that shine a light on the challenges and triumphs of our natural world.
Dolphins: Is Our Love Too Deep? is an investigative documentary that looks at the impact humans are having on wild dolphins through popular hand-feeding tourism programs in Australia.
The Platypus Guardian is an incredible story of an extraordinary man, whose life is changed forever when he meets a platypus named Zoom and realises she’s in danger. While Flyways tells the story of the world’s most incredible athletes – shorebirds – who migrate from the Southern Hemisphere to the Arctic to breed.
Richard Huddleston, ABC Acting Head of Factual and Culture, said: “These important documentaries are produced by some of the country’s finest filmmakers and take us into some spectacular landscapes. The stories are fantastic family viewing and give us all an opportunity to gain a better understanding on how to help protect our unique environments.”
Discover even more wonders of the natural world on ABC iview HERE
Synopsis
Dolphins: Is Our Love Too Deep? TX: Tuesday 6 June at 8.30pm
Is a ground-breaking investigative documentary that looks at the impact humans are having on wild dolphins through popular hand-feeding tourism programs in Australia.
In spite of our best intentions, hand feeding in some of these locations has caused a litany of problems such as high calf mortality, aggressive behaviour, and reduced survival rates in the wild. Investigating the dark secret behind the multi-million-dollar ‘eco tourism’ industry, the documentary challenges our insatiable need to interact with wild dolphins.
Production Credits: A Sea Dog TV International Pty Ltd production. Principal production funding from Screen Australia in association with ABC. Financed with support from Screenwest Producers Jodie De Barros and Leighton De Barros. Executive Producer Jodie De Barros. ABC Manager, Documentaries Stephen Oliver.
The Platypus Guardian TX: Tuesday 13 June at 8.30pm
The remarkable story of an extraordinary man and an astonishing animal.Cutting-edge camera technology and an obsessive guide, Hobart resident, Peter Walsh, reveals the secretive life of a female platypus and the threats she faces trying to survive in the increasingly depleted habitat of Hobart’s urban waterways.
Following a life-changing medical diagnosis, Pete decides to make it his mission to protect the platypus’s habitat. But it’s a race against time to save these unique and special animals.
Production Credits: A WildBear Entertainment Production. Principal production funding from Screen Australia in association with Screen Tasmania. Financed with support from Content Mint. Executive Producer: Chadden Hunter, Director/Producer: Nick Hayward, Producer: Fraser Johnston. ABC Executive Producer: Leo Faber.
Flyways TX: Tuesday 20 June at 8.30pm
Tells the story of the world’s most incredible athletes – shorebirds.
These birds travel vast distances during their epic, annual migration, flying from the Southern Hemisphere to the Arctic to breed. Yet new urban developments are threatening the birds as they make their return journey.
Documenting the pressures placed on these birds from climate change and ever-expanding human development, this film reveals uncomfortable truths but also shows us how to help save these tenacious birds from precipitous declines.
Production credits: A Storyland production for the ABC. Principal production funding from Screen Australia in association with HHMI Tangled Bank Studios. Financed with support from ZED, Public Television Service Taiwan and Screen Queensland. Local distribution by Antidote. International sales by WNET Group and ZED. Producer/Director/EP Randall Wood, Producer Rebecca McElroy, Executive Producer Aline Jacques, Trish Lake, Odilla O’Boyle, David Elisco, Sean B. Carroll, Christine Le Goff, Manuel Catteau, Wuan-Ling Guo. ABC Commissioning Editor Stephen Oliver.
Media Release – Streem
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