Channel 5 has announced at Sheffield DocFest a new four-day landmark event series, Dinosaur – with Stephen Fry.
The show will be presented by actor, writer, and dinosaur enthusiast, Stephen Fry. The show will chronologically tell the definitive story of 165 million years on earth – from the dawn of the dinosaurs to their extinction. The series is to be produced by Mentorn Media, and is commissioned for Channel 5 by Commissioning Editor, [Factual], Channel 5 & P+, Guy Davies. The series is co-produced by Krempelwood, and Executive Producers are Tayte Simpson, Chris Brogden, Blair Krempel and Mark Wood.
The four-part (4 x 60) factual series, “will invite Channel 5 audiences to immerse themselves in a new and magical Dinosaur World”, constructed with CGI and scientists from the Natural History Museum. Working with Dock10, who previously designed virtual studios for the Tokyo Olympics, the series will be anchored in a specially created space that allows the complete freedom to roam around an accurate representation of a prehistoric environment. “Breaking new boundaries on Channel 5, the cutting-edge technology from Dock10 has mainly been used in sport, but will now be fully realised in factual television for the very first time.”
Dock10 has designed “incredibly accurate” dinosaur species to populate the Dinosaur World. Each creature is brought to life by behind-the-scenes animators to move, walk, hunt and roar – like a dinosaur safari, audiences will see the creatures roving around. Dock10 has produced “highly realistic dinosaurs” with the graphics running on Unreal Engine. It will all be brought to life in real time whilst Stephen Fry is in the studio.
As Fry gets up close with the creatures, he will inform audiences about each one, revealing interesting specialist factual content along the way. He will take viewers on a journey through different prehistoric eras, highlighting iconic dinosaurs and uncovering new scientific discoveries.
Stephen Fry says: “Dinosaurs have always been a passion of mine, so I jumped at the opportunity to lend my excitement and curiosity to immerse audiences back in time 250 million years. The attention to detail and technology in this series allows us to really delve deep in to some exciting new scientific discoveries about these majestic creatures. It is exciting to be working with Mentorn and Dock10 to bring this world to life, and Channel 5 for the very first time, as their factual landmarks are known for cutting through and resonating with new audiences across the UK”.
Commissioning Editor, [Factual], Channel 5 & P+ Guy Davies says: “We are thrilled to be working with Stephen on such a ground-breaking series. Dinosaur offers everything audiences have always wanted to know in one entertaining and information packed TV event. It will be specialist factual content, but with an accessible and entertaining twist, using cutting-edge technology to really immerse the viewers in the magical and awe-inspiring world of the dinosaurs.”
Tayte Simpson, Executive Producer at Mentorn Media, says: “Using the virtual technology like this has been really exciting, working with Doc10 to push it in ways that it’s not been used before. We’re delighted to be producing this series for Channel 5 and working with Stephen Fry, the perfect host to help provide an entertaining take on specialist factual.”
Dinosaur- with Stephen Fry is commissioned by Guy Davies for Channel 5, and executive produced by Tayte Simpson and Chris Brogden at Mentorn Media. The series is co-produced by Krempelwood with Blair Krempel and Mark Wood as Executive Producers. The Series Director for Dinosaur- with Stephen Fry is David Lee. It will be distributed by Passion Distribution.
Jon Creamer
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