by Thinus Ferreira
National Geographic (DStv 181 / StarSat 220) has released a first trailer for its Genius: Aretha biographical anthology series about the life of singer-songwriter Aretha Franklinand also made a set of announcements about upcoming and newly commissioned TV programming for the yellow frame brand.
"In the wake of this extraordinary and unprecedented year, we remain focused at National Geographic on telling stories that remind us that beauty and wonder still exist in our world," said Courteney Monroe, National Geographic president of content.
"From IMPACT with Gal Gardot to Secrets of the Whales, National Geographic transports audiences around the globe, inspiring a new generation of explorers and adventurers."
During its scheduled session on Tuesday at America's Television Critics Association (TCA) Winter Tour 2021 in Pasadena done as a virtual presentation, National Geographic unveiled the first look at Genius: Aretha that will be shown this year, with Cynthia Erivo in the starring role.
Due to Covid-19, production on Genius: Aretha done by 20th Television and Imagine Entertainment as the third season of the anthology series that was supposed to air in May 2020, was shut down and delayed several times.
The 8-episode series has now been completed and will chronicle Aretha Franklin’s journey from an aspiring performer to the Queen of Soul, with Cynthia Erivo that performs several songs from Aretha's discography during the course of the series.
A film about Fauci
National Geographic Documentary Films is also preparing Fauci, a profile film from the Emmy-winning directors John Hoffman and Janet Tobias giving a peek into the life of America's Dr Anthony Fauci, the famed infectious disease specialist. A broadcast date is still to be announced.
Fauci will be a portrait into his long-standing professional career and personal life as the United States and the world grapples with the Covid-19 pandemic.
"There is only one Dr Fauci, and it is an
incredible privilege to bring his inspiring, lifelong quest to cure disease and
prevent outbreaks, to viewers around the world," said John Hoffman and Janet Tobias in a statement.
"This
film will be an unprecedented, intimate portrait of America's greatest public
servant, whose relentless pursuit of truth and devotion to science has never
been more important."
Carolyn Bernstein, executive vice president for scripted and documentary films for National Geographic, says "Dr Fauci has become a household name because of Covid-19, but what people may not
realise is the heroic and integral role he has played in shaping America's national
response to serious health crises for more than 50 years".
Two new Explorer adventures
National Geographic Explorer is also embarking on two new groundbreaking scientific expeditions that will culminate in two single-topic episodes broadcast in 2022 - one above the earth and one below.
The National Geographic Explorer Mark Synnott is leading an elite climbing team on an expedition to take the 79-year old biologist Bruce Means to the top of a Guyanese tepui, a mystical "island in the clouds", in search of undiscovered species completely new to science in Explorer: The Last Tepui.
Directed by National Geographic photographer and climber
Renan Ozturk and documentary filmmaker Taylor Rees, Mark Synnott will lead a trek from a remote
indigenous village, hacking a trail through uncharted jungle beneath towering waterfalls
spilling down from the clouds.
Once they reach the sheer wall of rock, Bruce Means will have to put his life in the hands of the
climbing team. If successful, he will finally complete his lifelong quest to prove the tepuis are an
undiscovered “Galapagos” of unique species that must be protected.
In Explorer: The Deepest Cave, Dr Bill Stone, the most experienced caver in the world, will lead an expedition to the bottom of the Cheve Cave far underneath Mexico's
Sierra Juarez mountains.
The
expedition has been compared to climbing Everest but in reverse. The three-month underground journey is
a dangerous and highly technical adventure requiring a team of more than 40
elite cavers as they try to break the world record of reaching the deepest depths inside the Earth than any human has
ever gone before.
Cave rescues and into unknown nature
National Geographic also ordered 4 unscripted projects from E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin responsible for the Free Solo film, that includes two documentary films, a 10-episode series and a one-hour pilot.
One one these documentary films will be about 2018's dramatic rescue of a Thai soccer team who got stuck inside a flooded cave in northern Thailand with a working title of Thai Cave Rescue.
The film will have exclusive access and never-before-seen footage
from the rescue and tells the story of the cave divers who challenged the
limits of human potential and became the unlikely heroes of an
edge-of-your-seat mission with life-or-death stakes.
"National Geographic shares our deep commitment to bringing honest
and inspiring stories to audiences around the world,” said directors Vasarhelyi
and Chin.
"We are thrilled to be working with them again on these powerful new
projects that not only push the boundaries of filmmaking but also shine a light
on the incredible resilience and determination of humankind."
Tompkins, another documentary film, Tompkins, is a profile of the life of Kristine Tompkins, the conservationist and former CEO of Patagonia, Inc. The film will be a portrait of the national parks throughout Chile and Argentina that she helped to create.
Into the Unknown is a 10-episode series that takes viewers inside the minds of elite adventure athletes as they recount transformative
stories of confronting fear, devastating personal loss and Mother Nature at her
harshest.
Episodes will include interviews and self-shot archival footage from surfers,
climbers, snowboarders, wingsuit jumpers, polar explorers and kayakers, as viewers learn
how they prepare mentally, physically and emotionally for their high-stakes endeavours.
Viewers get a front-row seat to these risk-takers’ adventures, uncovering
how they adapt and evolve, even after something goes catastrophically wrong.
Photographer is a 1-hour pilot with the series that will try to follow various National Geographic photographers. The pilot episode will tellthe story of the world-renowned
conservation and ocean photographers Paul Nicklen and Cristina Mittermeier.
Running with a Bear
In a new season of Running Wild with Bear Grylls he will travel from the deserts of Utah to the Dolomites of Italy and the Sierra Nevada mountains in California with guests ranging from Anthony Mackie, Bobby Bones, Terry Crews, Gina Carano, Keegan-Michael Key, Danica Patrick and Danny Trejo to Rainn Wilson.
Middle Earth
Race to the Center of the Earth is a new 7-episode series created by award-winning producers Bertram van Munster and Elise
Doganieri, that will pit four teams of
three against one another in a nonstop sprint across the globe for a $1 million
prize.
They will all start from different corners of the earth - South America, Russia, Canada and Southeast Asia - as they race to
a buoy holding the grand prize while facing untamed
jungles, frozen arctic, arid deserts, bustling cities, treacherous mountains
and vast oceans to reach the location where all four routes intersect.
Gal's gals
IMPACT with Gal Gadot is an extremely compelling new 6-episode short-form documentary series executive produced by Gal Gadot and award-winning filmmaker Vaneeesa Roth that follows
the powerful stories of resilient young women around the globe who overcome
obstacles and do extraordinary things.
Whale and polar bears
After three years and filming in 24 locations around the world, James Cameron's 4-episode event-series Secrets of the Whales has been completed.
Secrets of the Whales (they mourn! they do singing competitions!) is an epic, emotional and immersive look inside the secretive
world of whales, showing whale culture and the intricate social structures of five different whale
species: orcas, humpbacks, belugas, narwhals and sperm whales.
The National Geographic Explorer and photographer
Brian Skerry will help to unveil how whales make lifelong friendships, teach
clan heritage and traditions to their young, and grieve deeply for the loss of
loved ones.
The magazine's May issue will tie-in with this series, and National Geographic will also release a book, Secret of the Whales that will go on sale from April with Brian Skerry's photography during the making of the series.
Kingdom of the Polar Bears is new to Nat Geo WILD and will track Dennis Compayre, a veteran
polar bear guide, as he makes an epic first-time journey following his beloved bears
through the brutal Canadian winter and onto the frozen waters of Hudson Bay.
In
this high-stakes, high-reward venture, the team documents the secret world of
polar bears and the mysterious and disappearing kingdom of ice that sustains
them.
The team, armed with traditional ecological knowledge and
the latest 4K camera technology, witnesses never-before-seen seal-hunting
strategies and documents rapid adaptations to climate change, including whale
predation and open-water hunting.
Finally there is Breaking Bobby Bones, a new half-hour episodes series in which Bobby Bones travel to far-flung destinations across the United States to find people with unique jobs, skills,
hobbies and abilities.
They challenge him to conquer or at least attempt the tricks of their trades while
exploring the triumphs and tragedies that make them heroes.
