The judges for the 2011 ROSCAR Awards include some of the most esteemed and experienced professionals in the industry, read their short biographies below:

Cecil Barry
Red Pepper Pictures
Cecil is CEO and founding member of Red Pepper Pictures in Johannesburg. He has been involved in the Television industry for 22 years, starting out as a cameraman. It was as a cameraman on assignment that he developed a real passion for wildlife film making. Today he is in partnership with Zam Nkosi and Derek Badenhorst and together they employ approximately 120 people, producing many different programs for a number of broadcasters. 

Alison Barrat
Series Producer
National Geographic Television
After completing her degree in Zoology and Masters in film production Alison began her career as a researcher, working on productions for Teledu Telesgop, Atlas Adventures, and Partridge Films, before joining Survival Anglia. As part of the award winning team at Survival, Alison worked as an assistant producer and then producer before emigrating to the U.S.A. Alison founded her own production company and worked on commissions and as a freelance producer on films for National Geographic Channel, PBS, and National Geographic Television and Film. She also worked as the festival coordinator at the IWFF in Missoula, Montana, and was a part time lecturer for the University of Idaho’s department of Journalism and Mass Media. In addition to her own company Alison worked through independent production companies including Tigress Productions and JWM on both production and development for Discovery Channel and Animal Planet. In 2005 Alison joined the award winning team at National Geographic Television’s Natural History Unit where she became the Director of Development. After three years in development Alison returned to production, as the series producer for National Geographic’s Wild Chronicles, a weekly series broadcast on PBS. Alison is currently series producing a ten part series entitled Nat Geo Amazing!, due for broadcast on the National Geographic Channel late summer 2010.

Caroline Behar
Deputy Head of Acquisitions and Co-productions
France 5
Caroline Behar, Deputy Head of Acquisitions and Co-productions, joined France 5 in 1995, less than a year after the channel was launched (as La Cinquième). Caroline was first involved with the creation of AITED, the international association of educational and discovery channels, during the development of the association, and its setting up. The skills Caroline honed there led her to be recruited by another start-up association of the channel, La Cinquième Association, which promoted the new channel by creating interactive events around the country. Caroline's globetrotting instinct then led her to join the acquisitions and international co-productions department at France 5 were she scours international markets and festivals to find the best documentary films and projects in her areas of predilection: world cultures, geography, ethnology, wildlife, environment, science, etc. Caroline has been a member of numerous juries, and is regularly on the panels of television events, both in France and abroad.

Oloff Berg
Triosphere
Oloff Bergh manages the business side of Triosphere. He has over 12 years’ executive and production management experience in international television production. His Executive Producer series and documentary credits include Escape to Chimp Eden, Into the Pride, Rogue Nature, Predator Versus Prey, Into the Lion’s Den, Living with Tigers, and many more. Oloff’s particular area of expertise is the sourcing and negotiating of broadcast contracts to finance projects. He then ensures that the programming is produced and delivered on time and within budget – whilst ensuring that the client’s expectations of quality and viewer appeal are satisfactorily met. Oloff also drives a continual process of creative programming development at Triosphere, and targets this to meet objectives set through his longstanding relationships with broadcasters of factual television. Oloff graduated from the University of South Africa with a degree in Business Management and Industrial Psychology.

Thandi Brewer
Writer, Director, Actress and Teacher
Thandi is an award winning writer, director, actress and teacher who lived in extremely Lower Houghton. She was born in South Africa, with whom she has a passionate and ongoing love affair. An addicted traveler, she's voyaged through China, Russia, Europe, America and Africa, leaving chaos and mayhem in her wake. When not travelling, she writes scripts for Film and Television for money to pay for her addiction to books and films, and to support her century old house -- Chaos Manor -- in the middle of Hillbrow, Smoke in Hennops River, her ten dogs, 2 horses, one daughter, one husband, and assorted tenants. She has a broad knowledge of all aspects of the Arts fields, having worked in nearly all of them since she was six months old as an actress, singer, dancer, musician, writer, producer and director. This medley of varied experiences has melded into an uncanny knack for relating to and understanding the needs of an extremely broad spectrum of people of every walk of life. This ability lends itself well to the somewhat mystical craft known as "pleasing the masses" in any film or television venture.  An excellent attribute for any writer.

Patrick Conroy
Head of eNews
eNews
Patrick is the Group Head of eNews, overseeing the news content on e.tv, the eNews Channel and the division’s African News Service which broadcasts news to more than 10 television companies across the Continent. He joined the eNews team in 2001 as a senior reporter before becoming the news editor in 2004. In 2007 he was tasked with launching South Africa’s first independent 24 hour news channel the following year. The eNews Channel went live in June 2008 and is now the most watched 24 hour news service in the country. In October 2009 Conroy oversaw the launch of eNews Africa, a news service for the Continent. It also supplies news content for foreign news networks. Prior to working in television Conroy worked in advertising industry and also spent seven years in radio as a news reporter. He is an advanced scuba diver and is passionate about protecting our oceans.

Andrea Cornes
ITV
Andrea Cornes heads up ITV Studios factual and wildlife department at ITV Anglia in Norwich. The department produces over 100 hours of animal programming a year including ITVs Lion Country, and Cheetah Country series. In 2010 the Department relaunched the wildlife brand "Survival" on ITV1. Before moving to ITV Anglia in 1996, Andrea spent fifteen years working in London for a variety of broadcasters and production companies including BBC, Channel 4, Picture Palace Productions and Uden Associates.

Bethan Corney
Tigress Productions
Bethan Corney got her TV break as a reporter and producer on CNBC Europe’s daily half-hour science and technology news show Future File, then four years as a producer/director of popular Channel 4 science series Scrapheap Challenge and Six Experiments that Changed the World at RDF. She joined Five in 2002 as a Factual Commissioning Editor.  During her 8 years at Five Bethan oversaw Five’s Wildlife, adventure and factual acquisitions strategy, delivering 100 hours of quality science, history, human interest and wildlife programming to the channel including high profile titles such as Ice Road Truckers, Nature Shock and The Lion Cub from Harrods. Bethan joined Tigress Productions as Director of Co-Finance in September 2009 to head up wildlife programming and source co-finance for this established specialist factual production company.

Maryanne Culpepper
Executive Vice President, Editorial and Business development
National Geographic Television
Maryanne Culpepper is Executive Vice President, Editorial and Business development. In this role she heads up development of NGT’s factual films and series and coordinates 360 media throughout National Geographic, utilizing Society-wide media, talent and marketing. Working closely with NGT’s editorial groups, Culpepper spearheads efforts toward long-range editorial planning and facilitating collaboration between various production units. In addition, she is responsible for developing and implementing financing strategies for film projects, taking the lead for NGT in finding new broadcast partners and funding opportunities. Prior to joining National Geographic as director of story development in 1996, Culpepper served as research director for WUFT in Gainesville, Florida analyzing ratings data and conducting audience research. She produced nonfiction films for PBS for 10 years, winning Emmy awards in documentary and children’s programming. In 1988 she established and served as executive producer for Graffiti Works, a film and video production company based in Orlando, Fla., and Washington, D.C.

Craig Damster
Mother City Records
Craig Damster has been actively involved in the recording industry for over 20 years. His rich and varied career includes composing musical scores and garnering years of experience from his work as a commercial songwriter, musician and producer. He also specialises in audio production for film, television, radio and multi-media. His work on original composition and sound design has won documentaries' Loerie' and 'Best African Documentary' international awards in Milan. Craig has worked with Sony Records for an international compilation which won a Sama music award for best compilation album. More recently, he has composed scores for Warner Brothers, Hollywood. He has collaborated with some of the top musicians and producers in SA, including Brenda Fassie in association with Ripchord Productions. A number of songs have just been licensed to 'Intymme Productions' in Chicago for international release. Craig's company, Mother City Records, have had several radio hits including a No1 in2005 with Supadan 'Take a walk with me', Inadiflo "get on up" and Black Noise, "got wot I need". He produced the sensational Moodphase5ive debut album, 'Steady On'. It has been hailed by critics as 'ground-breaking' for SA hip-hop music. Of his more commercial achievements include a hit single for the London-based outfit, Silversonic, 'Turquoise Dreams', which made it to the top 5 on the UK dance charts. Craig has worked on hundreds of commercial projects over the years with well known brands such as Engen, Mercedes, Cell C, Clicks, Delheim, Sony, Lovelife, Redds, Vodacom, Woolworths, Fifa, Sun TV, ETV, SABC, MNet, DSTV, Dubai TV, Kulula, Addidas, Sanlam and many more.

Sara Dane
Editor
Sara Dane is a freelance editor with 18 years of experience in post-production. She is currently editing historical documentaries at Sabido Productions, a sister company of etv. Born and brought up in South Africa, she is a graduate of UCT and London University (UCL). She has worked in film, children’s television, commercials, documentary and factual entertainment. Until two years ago she was based in London where she edited award-winning programmes for the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Nickelodeon. Sara is now living in Cape Town.

Barry Donnelly
Composer and Sound designer
Barry Donnelly is based in Cape Town, working from Waterfront Studios. He has been involved the film and television industry for nearly 20 years as a composer and sound designer, and his experience ranges from international feature films (Invictus, District 9, Blood Diamond), international television drama (Gerneration Kill, 2009 Golden Reel Award, LA, Law and Order UK, House) to local features (White Wedding, Mr Bones II, Master Harold & The Boys) and local documentaries (The Great Dance, Cosmic Africa) He has recently been nominated for yet another international award at Wildscreen 2010 for his work on the Foster Brothers’ latest documentary, “Dragon’s Lair” his second nomination at the Bristol festival.

Janet van Eeden
Writer
Janet van Eeden has been a writer most of her life. She writes regular features for the Pietermaritzburg based The Witness and The Weekend Witness, Screen Africa and many national print media including The Sunday Independent, as well as a few British magazines, including Scriptwriter UK. Van Eeden has written ten screenplays, and numerous stage plays, of these she has produced five and directed two – taking them to the Grahamstown festival with funding from the National Arts Council. Van Eeden has her Masters in English (cum laude) and lectured part-time in Scriptwriting at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal for two years. She gives Scriptwriting workshops around the country and has given workshops at AFDA Johannesburg, for the Wildlife Film Academy at the Kruger National Park and Entabeni Game Park as well as at Wild Talk International Film Festival in 2009. She offers an online scriptwriting course for beginners called Cut to the Chase at www.janetvaneeden.com She is currently producing her own film, A Shot at the Big Time, in co-production with Moviworld, the producers of the Oscar-winning film, Tsotsi. She is also doing her PHD in Media, Scripting the South African Film, through UKZN.

Craig and Damon Foster
Filmmakers
Brothers Craig and Damon Foster are widely regarded as South Africa’s top documentary filmmakers. With over 16 years of experience shooting and directing, and having received over 50 international awards, the Foster brothers have deservedly carved themselves a niche in global film circles. The last few years are marked by the success of their films: The Great Dance – on the Kalahari San/Bushmen, Cosmic Africa a documentary feature on African cosmology, and most recently Sharkman for Animal Planet, exploring the fascinating phenomenon of shark hypnosis. For more than a decade Foster Brother Film Productions have been at the forefront of the African renaissance, using media to turn the tide on negative attitudes. They have reached an audience of over 200 million by using Africa's voice first hand. The filmmakers have a passion and commitment to the natural world and the relationship between man and nature has deeply influenced their style of filmmaking and the stories they seek out. In 1995 the brothers entered into an enduring relationship with the IUCN (The World Conservation Union) which has seen their ongoing involvement in African conservation issues, and particularly in the exploration and preservation of African indigenous heritage. The last 10 years have been characterised by the brothers’ experience with hunter-gatherer communities in the Kalahari, and with the Dogon of Mali. They have worked and lived with some of the continent’s most powerful diviners, healers and hunters, whose legendary openness and intrinsic wisdom opened their eyes to another world…a world of deep connectedness to one’s fellow humans and a bond with the environment.

Matthew Frank
CEO
Zodiak Rights
Following Zodiak Entertainment’s acquisition of the RDF Media Group earlier this year, Matthew Frank is now the CEO of Zodiak Rights, the group’s newly combined distribution division which currently represents more than 10,000 hours of high quality programming in the popular factual, factual entertainment, entertainment, documentary, drama and kids’ genres. The unique catalogue includes programming on behalf of broadcasters as diverse as truTV, TLC, Discovery, Fox USA, Five, Channel 4, ITV and the BBC as well as over 100 independent producers. In 2009 - 2010 the enlarged division generated combined revenues in excess of €60 million. Matthew had been at the helm of RDF Media Group’s original distribution business, RDF Rights, since its inception in 1994 which began on a small scale producing and selling a modest number of short news and business features each month. From there it grew to become one of the UK’s leading independent distributors and was voted No1 Distributor in Broadcast’s Peer Poll survey in 2006, 2007 and 2009. Prior to his career in distribution, Matthew worked as a freelance radio journalist on BBC Radio Four and Five and prior to that as a commodity broker in the city trading sugar, coffee and potato futures.

Steve Greenwood
Series Producer
BBC NHU
Steve Greenwood has been producing documentaries for the BBC for the last eighteen years. Most recently he made the BBC expedition series taking biologists to the rainforests in Expedition Borneo, Lost Land of the Jaguar and Lost Land of the Volcano. He is now the series producer of the BBC's wildlife strand Natural World.

Lee Gutteridge
Nature Guide, Author and Teacher
Lee Gutteridge is a professional nature guide, teacher, and an owner of the prestigious Entabeni Nature Guide Training school in Northern South Africa. He has been viewing wildlife in a professional capacity for nearly 20 years and has participated in the production of many documentaries on the subject. He has also authored several books on wildlife and human history within the Southern and Central African sub-regions. He has been associated with the Wildlife Film Academy as a host and trainer over the last two years, gaining an insight into the filming and production of many short films

Carl Hall
CEO
Parthenon Entertainment
Carl Hall founded Parthenon Entertainment after a mutually endorsed buy out of HIT Entertainment’s highly successful wildlife division, of which he was managing director for 13 years. Prior to HIT, Carl worked for Muppet creator, Jim Henson, and before that was part of Anglia Television’s world-renowned Survival Wildlife team. At Parthenon, Carl is CEO and in overall charge of a talented team of senior management who control the creative, technical and financial direction of the company. He brings formidable experience and know-how to the company, having produced or executive produced more than 600 hours of programming for global audiences. He has supported the continued growth and expansion of the company, which includes the creation of a London production base to house a high definition post-production and facilities operation, the setting up of a wildlife production office in Bristol and the launch of Parthenon Kids, the company’s foray into the production and distribution of children’s programming.

Simon Hansen
Inspired Minority Pictures
Simon has collaborated, creatively, technically, commercially and personally with professionals all over the world in a wide range of disciplines. His broad skill set has made him a very worthy collaborator. Simon created the internationally renowned visual effects company Atomic Visual Effects. His self-taught visual effects skills strategically armed him and empowered him as a filmmaker. These skills plus the core technology Simon developed with US based companies, placed him in the unique position of implementing, for the first time anywhere in the world, new breakthrough film technology which was used on his first feature film Spoon which he co-wrote, co-directed and co-produced with his business partner of 14 years Sharlto Copley. The camera technology known as the Si-2K was subsequently used by Danny Boyle on Slumdog Millionaire which received an Oscar nomination for cinematography. Simon is an innovator and ideas driven artist with a clear vision of what he wants to achieve with his life as a filmmaker. He is also a noted talent spotter having found and mentored Neill Blomkamp from when he was 16 years old. He produced a number of Neill’s projects including Alive in Joburg, the short film that became District 9.

Mike Holding
Filmmaker
Afriscreen
Mike Holding is an accomplished director and cinematographer of international television wildlife documentary films and docu-dramas and has won numerous international awards over the years in recognition of his diverse talents as a filmmaker.  Mike was born and raised in wilds of Kenya, has a BSc. honours degree in Zoology; a Diploma in Business Management; is a keen naturalist and outdoorsman; an experienced pilot, an active conservationist, and has travelled very widely throughout Africa’s wilderness regions. His career spans a dynamic 30-years in the communications industry starting as an apprentice cameraman for BBC TV News in Kenya in 1978, a period as a magazine editor and pro photographer, many years directing, shooting and producing blue-chip corporate films, and the last 18 years as a wildlife cameraman, director and producer. Mike’s wildlife cinematography has been recognised with multiple awards, not least of which are Emmy awards for Cinematography shared by the “Planet Earth” and “LIFE” camera teams. While Mike is most at home behind his camera, or flying aerial shots in remote places, he also conceptualises, scripts, shoots, edits and directs post-production on all of AfriScreen’s projects.

Michael Mavretic
Director of Development
National Geographic Channel
As Director of Development for NGC and Nat Geo Wild, Michael Mavretic is responsible for sourcing, creating, and developing the strongest programming ideas in the global, non-fiction television market. Mavretic is currently focused on series concepts, big specials and programs that work for NGC’s Expedition Week and Nat Geo Wild’s Big Cat Week.  He is also on the lookout for characters for both  domestic (US) and global audiences.  And as always, he is eager to hear about innovative ways to bridge digital and programming strategies. Prior to joining NGC in 2002, Mavretic worked for National Geographic Channels International (NGCI) and before that Chedd-Angier Productions (Watertown, MA). Mavretic received his BA from The College of William and Mary and an MTS from Harvard Divinity School.  He currently lives with his wife and two daughters in Washington, DC.

Hiro Iwasaki
Executive Producer
NHK Enterprises Inc
Leading natural-history producer Hiromichi Iwasaki joined NHK in 1984 and started his career as a programme director and has long been involved with film-making. Since transferring to Science Programmes Division in 1989, he has produced numerous natural-history series including Global Family and Planet of Ocean. He was a series producer of the major co-production of Planet Earth with BBC. He took the leadership in sending appropriate staff from NHK to participate in filming as well as producing the series. His contribution in introducing NHK's cutting edge technology of Hi-def and supersensitive filming deserves special mention. At the Natural History Unit in NHK Enterprises, he was a Head of the Unit and launched a new 90-minute blue chip slot called “Wild Life”. He is currently working on several international co-productions as an executive producer.  In addition to producing many scientific documentary and nature programmes for NHK, Iwasaki participated in the production of David Attenborough’s The Life of Birds series while assigned to the BBC Natural History Unit. One of his films, Vampire from the Abyss, received the Jules Verne Award for Best Film at the 2002 Jules Verne Film Festival, the Prime Minister’s Prize at the 2003 Science and Technology Film/Video Festival (in Japan), and the Adventure and Discovery Prize at the 2003 International Scientific Audio-Visual Conference.

Andrew Jackson
BBC NHU
Andrew became the Head of the BBC Natural History Unit in autumn 2009. He is responsible for heading up the award winning production unit based in Bristol, delivering a wide range of natural history programmes on TV, radio, online and for the cinema. Andrew rejoins the BBC after an eighteen year absence working in the independent sector. He began his TV career in BBC News and Current Affairs before joining the Natural History Unit in 1986. As a producer-director he worked on several award-winning series for BBC One and Two and joined Tigress Production in 1991 producing and directing the ITV specials In The Wild. He worked with, among others, Julia Roberts, Goldie Hawn and Bob Hoskins. Whilst at Tigress he was directly involved in producing or directing more than 100 hours of TV. He became Managing Director in 2002 and helped build a worldwide reputation for Tigress for making outstanding science, wildlife and adventure programmes. Andrew grew up in Malaysia and lives in Bristol with his family.

Tania “TJ”Jenkins
Filmmaker
Afriscreen
Tania Jenkins (better known as “TJ”) has been in the film industry in various genres for 25 years. Her career began after studying Communications and Marketing.  At the tender age of 20, her first Production Management position was on a 36- part TV Drama series for Franz Marx Productions.  Several TV drama series followed.  She moved into feature films and Line Producing during South Africa’s boom as a popular location for international feature films. Her final feature film venture was to Line-Produce “Sarafina!” starring Whoopi Goldberg for Anant Singh’s VIdeovision Entertainment.  In 1992 Tania joined M-Net as International Co-Productions Executive, serving as Executive Producer on their “New Directions” Dramas series and several successful wildlife docu-dramas. In 1994 she joined John Varty’s Londolozi Film Productions as GM and Executive Producer. Tania returned to the freelance world as Production advisor to NU-Metro/GTV on several wildlife documentaries.  In 1996 she Production Managed the African filming of “In the Wild - Cheetahs with Holly Hunter” for Tigress Productions.  Later that year, Tania formed AFRISCREEN FILMS and has since been the Executive Producer on all of AfriScreen Films’ productions, as well as being intimately involved with all of AfriScreen’s facilitation work for international clients.

Dereck Joubert
Filmmaker
A National Geographic Explorer in Resident and filmmaker with 5 Emmy’s and a Peabody to his awards credit has over 25 years experience in the field of natural history filmmaking as a director, producer and cameraman. Films like Eternal Enemies and Eye of the Leopard are well known classics but it is in the realm of conservation and turning success in filmmaking into an effective conservation voice that occupies a great deal of his time. The Big Cats Initiative with National Geographic is a major effort that he and Beverly have started with the Society and this indicates the passion and dedication they both have for blending art and science as a powerful conservation force to make the world better.

Dermod Judge
Advertising Copywriter and Creative Director
Dermond ran a corporate and documentary company for 12 years and won more local and international awards for programmes than any other individual practitioner in Cape Town. Dermod turned to screenplay writing in the 1990s and is marketing several screenplays in Ireland, Europe and North America. Lectures and has facilitated workshops in screenwriting throughout South Africa and in Nigeria, Zambia, Kenya, Zambia, Mozambique, Zanzibar and Berlin.Has been involved in the NFVF’s SEDIBA script editing programme its inception and edits individual scripts regularly for writers and production companies. Has been commissioned to write screenplays for some SA production companies.Has served on the boards of the Cape Film Commission and Sithengi and was made a lifetime honorary member of SASWA. Was a founder member of the Irish Film and TV Academy and served on the inaugural Irish Film and TV.

Dieter Kaiser
Independent media consultant
Following degree courses in history and philosophy at the universities of Cologne and Bonn, ending up with a master’s degree, he completed an extensive traineeship working for radio and television. He then went on to work as a freelance author and director, producing numerous documentaries for various television channels. After taking up a permanent post as editor at Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR), a public channel, he worked as executive and commissioning producer in the editorial department specialising in political subjects and in the “Culture and Society” and “Science/Ecology” departments. In 1990, he was appointed editor-in-chief of the animal and nature programmes section, where he supervised a large number of both individual films and major series produced by German producers and / or on the basis of international cooperation. Many of these films won awards at national and international festivals. He has been working as an independent media consultant since 2008 and has already been chosen for the judges’ panel at several festivals in Germany and abroad.

Trevor de Kock
Pelican Pictures
Awaiting Biography

Walter Kohler
Executive Producer
ORF
ORF-UNIVERSUM, the Natural History Unit of the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation, is – besides the BBC NHU ­ – the leading producer of high-quality and multi award-winning natural history films worldwide. The story of the UNIVERSUM strand began in September 1987. In its 23rd year the strand is still a highly successful national and international brand. After his PhD in journalism and political science Walter Koehler joined the ORF as a member of staff. Since 1987 he worked as a filmmaker, producer and series producer for the newly founded weekly wildlife strand UNIVERSUM. 1994 he became Head of the ORF’s NHU. His record as executive producer contains numerous acclaimed wildlife epics which won numerous festivals around the world.

Peter Lamberti
CEO
Aquavision TV Production
Peter Lamberti, wildlife enthusiast and visionary, is the creative driving force behind Aquavision TV Productions, the largest wildlife filmmaking production company in South Africa. Founded in 1990, Peter’s passion for filming extraordinary animal behaviour both underwater and in the wild African bush, has led Aquavision TV Productions from making local dive programmes to producing award winning internationally recognized wildlife documentaries.

Tim Liversedge
Tim Liversedge is a citizen of Botswana where he has lived and worked for the past 45 years. Wildlife, art, conservation and photography have been his lifelong passions. Tim began filming and producing wildlife films in order to share his deep knowledge of Botswana’s wildlife and environment with an international audience. He has since completed 17 co-productions for top broadcasters such as the BBC & National Geographic.  His films have garnered many international awards. Always at the forefront of innovation, Tim pioneered the use of 35mm film and High Definition video in order to achieve superior film quality. With his entry into large format film production he broke new ground in creating the first digitally post-produced wildlife giant-screen film ‘ROAR – Lions of the Kalahari’. He also co-produced the 3D IMAX film ‘African Adventure – journey through the Okavango’. Tim has been a judge at some of the world’s top wildlife film festivals including Wildscreen, UK; Jackson Hole, USA; and The International Wildlife Film Festival in Missoula, USA. Tim is an internationally acclaimed wildlife filmmaker and is one of Botswana’s most respected naturalists. His achievements in filmmaking and his many scientific contributions have been recognized with the awarding of an Honorary Doctorate of Philosophy.

Chris Lotz
Chris Lotz has 14 years experience in the television industry as a Lighting Cameraman. In those fourteen years he has gained extensive experience in numerous local documentaries, television series’ and various other forms of production. He has also gained much experience as an international documentary cameraman. This includes work for Discovery, National Geographic, BBC, German and Dutch TV. Chris is on the BBC’s coveted list of preferred international cameramen. His body of work is comprised of many styles of production: Documentary, series, reality, actuality, wildlife, multi-camera, HD production, magazine inserts, commercials, drama, corporate and music videos. Local shows include familiar names such as: Carte Blanche, Top Billing, Free Spirit, All Access, etc. Chris has won 4 awards for camerawork. He was also D.O.P on, amongst others, the critically acclaimed ‘Being San’, M-Net’s acclaimed ‘Bram Fischer documentary’ and award winning shows such as ‘Iceman’, ‘Our House’, ‘Revlon Supermodel’. He recently won a SAFTA award for Cinematography on the flagship HD documentary series ‘Shoreline’ for the SABC. Recently Chris has been focussing his skills as Director of Photography even further, acting as an expert consultant from the conceptualisation to post production of programmes. With his background as qualified Electronic Engineer his technical abilities are further refined. He combines his skills and experience to also offer a Technical Director service, e.g. ‘Revlon Supermodel’ (SAFTA award winning SABC series), ‘Our House’ (multi HDCAM reality series for Ireland and SABC, SAFTA winner), etc. As Technical Director he oversees the technical processes in production, crew hire and management while he facilitates the realisation of the director’s vision in terms of visual style. Chris loves making pictures almost as much as he loves the camaraderie and friendships forged during hard working production. He believes that to be successful in this industry you need to be 100% Creative, 100% Technical and 100% People skilled.

Jaco Loubser
Senior Producer
Homebrew Films
Jaco grew up in the Karoo and spent most of his early life outdoors in the Karoo National Park. He studied Zoology and Entomology at the University of the Free State and completed an M.Sc. (Zoology) cum laude in 1992. He has worked as a ranger and information officer in various national parks and private reserves and lectured animal behavior and ecology at Potchefstroom University and then moved down to the Western Cape for a position at Stellenbosch University before leaving the academic world for wildlife filmmaking. He always had a keen interest in combining his background in science with film and television and throughout gained experience by working with various crews, both locally and internationally. He joined Homebrew Films in 1999 and he produces a variety of tv programmes, in a variety of genres. He successfully produces a variety of wildlife programming, amongst others the long running (since 2004) weekly environmental series for kykNET (Groen) and recently produced the highly acclaimed and award winning series on the coast of South Africa – Shoreline – for SABC. Jaco is the senior producer at Homebrew Films.

David Makubyane
Content Editorial Manager
Top TV
David selected Drama as one his standard eight main subjects at high school, laying a foundation for his career in the Entertainment industry.  He then went on to complete a Degree in Dramatic Arts with Honors at the University of the Witwatersrand in 2001 after matriculating.  He majored in Television Studies, Directing, Media studies, Performing Arts Management and Media Studies. In 2001 David won a Documentary production award at Wits University and was an intern for Sky News while completing his fourth year at university. From 2002 -2003 he got involved with the Arepp road show for youth educational performance based programs on HIV/Aids and life skills. In 2003 he started freelancing within the industry working on a number of corporate videos and performing in commercials and industrial theatre projects for different companies and then went on to work for lovelife as a National Trainer, then later became a National Program Coordinator in 2004. In 2005 David Makubyane joined the SABC as the Commissioning Manager for local content under the Content Enterprises and was promoted to the Head of Commissioning in the beginning of 2008. By the end of 2008 he was promoted again to be the International Content Programme Manager. In May 2010 David Makubyane was appointed Editorial Manager for TopTV and is currently still in this post to date.

Richard Matthews
Wild Images
Richard is an internationally recognised wildlife filmmaker with over thirty years of experience in production, camerawork and directing. Born in South Africa Richard has degrees in Life Sciences and in Film, Photography and Television. He joined the BBC Natural History Unit in 1979 working on Wild Track, Animal Magic, Wildlife On One, The Natural World and Attenborough’s Emmy award winning series “The Living Planet”. After turning freelance Richard filmed in the Serengeti with Alan Root for Survival Anglia. His film, “Queen of the Beasts”, showcased a classic encounter of infanticide in lions. During this time Richard designed and developed the car balcony door bracket now widely used in African wildlife filming. Richard’s UK independent production company, Zebra Film Productions, pioneered the theme of dangerous and deadly creatures in “Nightmares of Nature”. In 2004 Richard moved to Cape Town and his company, Wild Images, now specializes in aerial photography. He has developed a number of gyro-stabilised aerial camera systems for use on light aircraft and helicopters. Recent credits include the BBC feature “The Meerkats”, “The Great Rift”, “Amazon with Bruce Parry”, the National Geographic “Migration” series and “Running with Wolves”. His films have won numerous awards including three Emmys and a BAFTA.

Greg McEwan-Kocovaos
Greg’s musical career began in the late seventies and developed further while studying at Rhodes University in the early 80’s, performing at various venues around campus and music venues in Grahamstown, Greg often shared the stage with musicians from the Rhodes Music Dept and later performed with many musicians in and around the Eastern Cape. After completing his studies, Greg became an active performer in popular music venues around South Africa and collaborated with many professional musicians’ eventually meeting renowned UK keyboard player and musician Duncan Mackay (ex 10cc, Kate Bush, Alan Parsons Project & Cockney Rebel member) in 1985. A musical partnership ensued that endures to this day, working on many projects together, their last rock album was recorded in 2004 and in 2005 Greg co-composed 14 tracks for a wildlife documentary commissioned by Animal Planet called “White Lions – King of Kings” produced by Australian documentary filmmakers Stephen Van Mil and David Adams. Now the resident Sound Editor at E-Productions, a division of E.TV based in Longkloof Studios in Cape Town he specializes in audio post-production and mixing HD Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound audio for documentary film projects produced for international acquisition.

Matt Meech
Matt is an award winning freelance film editor working in Bristol & London. 
He specialises in Natural History & Observational Documentary films. Working on blue chip programmes such as the forthcoming 'Africa' series from the BBC to creating the format & editing style of Animal Planet's  'River Monsters' & 'Fatal Attractions' .

Thierry Mino
Thierry Mino started his career as the Latin America representative for a French Audiovisual consultancy. He then joined Europe Images - M5, a major French distribution company where he was the International Sales manager before becoming Sales Manager for the Paris-based office of Film Board Canada. In 2008 Thierry was recruited by France Télévisions as Deputy Head of Acquisitions and International Co-productions. Thierry buys and commissions documentaries for all the France Télévisions channels.

Stephen Moss
Producer
BBC
Stephen Moss is a naturalist, author and television producer specialising in birds. Based at the BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol, his long list of credits includes award-winning UK-based series such as Springwatch, The Nature of Britain and Birding with Bill Oddie. He has also worked in all seven continents, on projects such as Big Cat Diary, Wildest Dreams and The Really Wild Show: Antarctica. He has written a number of books, including The Bumper Book of Nature and A Bird in the Bush: a social history of birdwatching, writes a regular column for The Guardian newspaper, and makes frequent appearances on BBC Radio. He lives in rural Somerset with his wife and five children.

Sefania Müller
Filmmaker
Obsessively Creative
Stefania started her career in natural history as a photojournalist specializing in travel and underwater. She contributed to many local and international magazines and books, winning several awards for her photography. She made the natural transition into wildlife filmmaking and produced series and specials for Broadcasters such as National Geographic, Discovery Channel, NHK, ZDF and distribution companies Off the Fence and Parthenon. Now, 18 years down the line, Stefania is owner and creative producer of Obsessively Creative and executive producer for Earth Touch. She is currently working on several blue chip programs for both companies.

Amy Nelson
TVF
TVF International are distributors of independently sourced factual programming, representing some of the world's most established, innovative and award-winning producers. Having acquired around three thousand hours of quality singles and series from around the world, their catalogue represents the pick of the world's best factual programming. TVF International is also able to raise finance on behalf of producers through co-productions, pre-sales and investment advice.   Amy runs the Acquisitions department and oversees Coproductions, New Media and Marketing; selecting and developing content for international sales and preparing pitches and marketing strategy.

Chris Nicklin
Executive Producer
e.tv
Chris Nicklin graduated in politics from the University of Cape Town. He entered journalism at the height of the battle against apartheid in the 1980s, and reported on the decisive historical events that led to the release of Nelson Mandela and the holding of South Africa’s first democratic elections.  He then joined the BBC in London, and worked as a reporter, producer and duty editor on World Service radio and television, including flagship news and current affairs shows like ‘Newshour’.  After being posted back to South Africa by the BBC in the late 1990s, he took up a job with the country’s newly established free-to-air television channel, e.tv. Chris has served as National News Editor and Executive Producer of Factual Programming at e.tv, including producing biographies on former President Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Chris Palmer
Filmmaker / Author
Chris Palmer is an environmental and wildlife film producer, recently named recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award for Media at the International Wildlife Film Festival. Chris has spent 25 years producing more than 300 hours of original programming for prime time television and the giant screen (IMAX) film industry. He joined the full-time faculty at American University in August 2004 as Distinguished Film Producer in Residence and founded the Center for Environmental Filmmaking at the School of Communication, which he now directs. Chris continues to produce films, give speeches, and conduct workshops across the country. As well as being president of the MacGillivray Freeman Films Educational Foundation, Chris also serves as chief executive officer of VideoTakes, Inc., where students can make major contributions to films and videos as interns or employees. In 1983, Chris founded the nonprofit National Audubon Society Productions, serving as president and CEO for 11 years. In 1994, he founded the nonprofit National Wildlife Productions. Chris currently serves on the boards of thirteen nonprofit organizations. Born in Hong Kong, Chris grew up in England and immigrated to the United States in 1972. His new book, Shooting in the Wild: An Insider’s Account of Making Movies in the Animal Kingdom (Sierra Club Books), has been greeted with critical acclaim.

Billi-Jean Parker
Creative Director
Aquavision TV Productions
After ten years in professional theatre, Billi-Jean moved to the world of television where she has worked across all genres, most notably on two National Geographic series about rituals and traditions in Southern Africa. Over the past five-years Billi-Jean has focused on natural history and is currently Creative Director at Aquavision TV Productions in Johannesburg. While at Aquavision she wrote and produced six one-hour natural history films for both National Geographic and Animal Planet, including Lions of Crocodile River (Houston Worldfest Platinum award for writing) and multiple SAFTA award winner, Dolphin Army.

Kathryn Pasternak
Writer, Producer and Director
Kathryn Pasternak is a writer, producer and director of wildlife films for international television distribution.  After 15 years at National Geographic Television, the last 9 years of which she was Senior Producer in the Natural History Unit, Pasternak left Nat Geo to pursue projects independently.  She’s just completed a series of 6 X 30 for Animal Planet International called SAFARI SISTERS, post-producing the series in Zimbabwe and South Africa for Wolhuter Media.  In 2007-08, Pasternak also was Executive Producer of 3 one-hour wildlife specials for National Geographic Channel and Aquavision Television Productions in Johannesburg.  Pasternak is the recipient of two National Emmy Awards for supervision of WOLF PACK (2004) and PREDATORS AT WAR (2005), and was nominated for an Emmy for Best Science and Nature film in 2006 for her film HYENA QUEEN, together with filmmaker, Kim Wolhuter.  Pasternak is based in Washington, DC. 

Caroline Pryce
Senior Editor
NHU Africa
Caroline has been in television for over 10 years starting out at the Discovery Channel UK in 2000. In 2004 she was reluctantly pushed into finishing a 13 part series and hasn’t looked back. The last few years are marked by the success of award winning programmes and series work such as A Kalahari Tail and a Wild Walk with Swati Thiegerajan. Caroline works in conjuction with other editors and with internal and external producers for the NHU Africa. She has just completed Cheetah Diaries Series 2 and seeks to edit with integrity and sensitivity.

Max Quinn
Producer/Director/Cameraman
NHNZ Ltd (Natural History NZ Ltd), Dunedin, New Zealand
Max Quinn has been involved in television production for over 40 years. His first films were made on his 8mm movie camera while still at school. The first twelve years of his career were as a cine cameraman cutting his teeth in news, current affairs, documentaries, and as a DoP on drama. In the 1980’s he moved into TV production training as a director and producer on children’s programmes for Television New Zealand. In 1987 Max fulfilled a lifelong passion for natural history by joining their Natural History Unit. In 1991 his camera and directing skills led him to winter-over in Antarctica to film The Emperors of Antarctica and The Longest Night - which earned him the Best Director award at the NZ Film and TV awards. He has since completed 14 documentaries set in the Polar Regions making him one of the most prolific and experienced polar film-makers working today. His most recent polar production was Expedition Antarctica shot during International Polar Year’s Census of Antarctic Marine Life. The resulting documentary has screened worldwide on National Geographic International and in the US on Smithsonian Channel (US title: Into the Frozen Abyss). In recent years, Quinn has also applied his expertise to projects bringing China to the world's attention including China Circus: On Ice, and three MegaStructures episodes for National Geographic. He has recently completed Awesome Pawsome 2: The Next Generation, for Animal Planet - on a tiger breeding programme in Australia and an expedition to the Gulf Of Carpentaria in search of rare Sawfish for National Geographic Wild’s new series Strike Force. But the Antarctic continues to lure him having just returned yet again on the Antarctic Whale Expedition... a non lethal research project that is currently being edited into an exciting and action packed documentary.

Lynne Richardson
Filmmaker
Lynne trained in advertising and practiced for eight years. In 1983 she began to pursue her interests in documentary production and cinematography. During the past two decades she has conceptualized, produced, directed and shot many acclaimed and popularly rated films in more than twenty countries. She also gained experience 'in-front' of the camera co-presenting anthropological works as well as in the news arena. In 1994, she and her husband, Philip joined forces to form Africa Wildlife Films. They have since then, separately and together produced, directed and filmed documentaries and commercials.

Leslie Rochat
Executive Director
AfriOceans Conservation Alliance (AOCA)
Lesley Rochat, former actress and TV presenter, is the founder and Executive Director of AfriOceans Conservation Alliance (AOCA). AOCA achieved major success through the Maxine, Science, Education and Awareness Programme, a unique shark conservation campaign designed by Lesley. She is an avid diver and a PADI Divemaster, a well-published travel and environmental journalist and underwater photographer. She is also the author of children's books and educational books and the creative director of numerous educational and awareness initiatives, from campaigns such as her Panda award winning Rethink the Shark campaign, to educational outreach programs for children. She is the CEO of Blue Pulse Pictures, a production company which has produced many marine related documentaries, including the multi-award winning Sharks in Deep Trouble. Lesley is the Director of Media Productions for the USA based Shark Research Institute, a member of the Women Divers Hall of Fame, which recognizes women for their outstanding achievements in the marine world, and an Affiliate Member of the International League of Conservation Photographers.

Richard Slater-Jones
Freelance Producer/ Director
After completing his zoology degree, Richard stepped into the film industry 10 years ago by producing, directing and filming his first project ‘Nights with Leopards” for National Geographic’s EXPLORER. Since then he has been a creative force as producer/ director behind prime-time documentary television, such as National Geographic’s highest rating series ‘Taboo’, the BBC ONE hit series ‘Vet Safari’ and Animal Planet’s landmark series ‘Into the Pride’. Never leaving his roots behind-the-camera far behind, he also regularly works as a DoP for documentary Specials on PBS (NOVA), Channel 4, History Channel, National Geographic and others. Bored with a lot of predictable documentary television out there, he constantly pushes the style boundaries of what documentary television is, or should be. He splits his time between remote corners of the planet, the edit suites of New York, DC and Bristol, and his home in Cape Town.

Michalea Strachan
TV Presenter
Michaela has been presenting TV programmes for 25years. She is best known as a widlife presenter and has presented for the BBC, Ch.5, ITV, Ch.4 all in the UK, Animal Planet, Nat Geo and various cable channels. Programmes include: 'The Wide Awake Club' a children's saturday morning magazine programme for ITV, 'OWL TV' a children's wildlife programme for ITV, 15 years on 'The Really Wild Show' for the BBC, 10 years on 'Countryfile' a farming and nature show for the BBC, 'Michaela's Wild Challenge', 'Animal Rescue Squad', Michaela's Animal Roadshow' and 'Animal Families' all for Ch.5, 'Orangutan Diaries' and Elephant Diaries' for the BBC and Animal Planet, 'Safari Live' for Nat Geo, 'Big 5 Little 5' and 'Postcards From The Wild' for Animal Planet. Michaela has won 2 BAFTAS, one for the series 'Michaela's Wild Challenge' and one for Best Children's Presenter. 

Vyv Simpson
Commissioning Editor
NHU AFRICA
Vyv has spent all his working life making, selling or commissioning factual programmes. He is currently based in Cape Town working as Creative Director & Commissioning Editor for NHU AFRICA. He spent three years as Executive Producer with the award winning Darlow Smithson Productions in London between 1998 and 2001 building strong links with the major US and UK Broadcasters before joining the world renowned BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol. During his time in Bristol Vyv ran BBC Wildvision, looked after the NHU Children’s series The Really Wild Show and was Executive Producer on major blue chip series like the Nature of Britain for BBC1. In 2008 he joined Discovery Networks Europe where he was responsible for commissioning and delivering some 200 hours of original programming for Animal Planet International.

Swati Thiyagarajan
Senior Special Correspondent
New Delhi TV (India)
Senior Special Correspondent New Delhi TV (India) Swati is a TV journalist and has been working with NDTV for the fifteen years years. Her primary area of work is Wildlife and Environment. She has her own show on TV called Bornwild. It is a show that takes the viewers into wild India. In each episode, Swati picks a place or animal and then looks at the issues of conservation, the politics, the obstacles, the people, the laws and the work on the ground. Her idea is to impress upon the viewer the beauty of the natural world of her country and the need to protect it. It is one of the top rates shows on channel NDTV24X7 – the most watch English Channel in India and a channel broadcast around the world. Prior to joining TV, Swati completed a triple Masters in English Literature, Mass Communication and Video. She did an MA in Video in England at the Middlesex University. Swati was given the Ramnath Goenka Award for excellence in journalism for environment reporting twice. It is one of the biggest awards in India and was presented by the Prime Minister. She has also been given the green warrior award in India and also won the Carl Zeiss award for reporting on tiger conservation. What interests her are the issues of either conflict or confluence between people and the wildlife. She believes it is in understanding local communities and their needs and their relationship with their environment, that we can ultimately save our natural world. 

Anton Truesdale
Creative Director / DOP
Triosphere
Anton Truesdale is Triosphere’s Creative Director and Chief D.O.P. He typically drives the development, pre-shoot story design and scripting process, directs camerawork and presenters in the field, and guides the story through to final edit and delivery. Anton has over 12 years’ experience as a Producer, Series Director, Director, Director of Photography and Cameraman. Anton’s earlier films included Living With Tigers (a Discovery Channel Quest special), and Ambush in Paradise, Sense & Scentability, Savage Instinct, The Brotherhood, Ghosts of the Great Salt Lakes and Jamu: The Orphaned Leopard (all for National Geographic). For Jamu, Anton spent a year on foot in the remote wilderness of Zambia’s Luangwa Valley, raising and filming an orphaned leopard cub. Anton graduated from the Rigate School of Art in the United Kingdom, and became an acclaimed wildlife artist before he entered the world of film and television. His paintings of African wildlife hang in corporate and private collections around the world.

Edwina Thring
Vice President, Acquisitions & Co-Productions
National Geographic Television International
Edwina Thring joined NGTI in 1988, when it was known as Explore International. In 1999, she was promoted to the role of Sales Director, overseeing the sales team and retaining responsibility for sales in key territories.  In 2005 she became Head of Acquisitions and Co-productions, reflecting the company’s increasing involvement in these areas.  Today Edwina is Vice President, Acquisitions & Co-Productions and the focal point for National Geographic Television’s international co-productions and the key contact for the growing number of independent producers that NGTI represents. Prior to entering the TV distribution world Edwina worked in production, starting with Reg Grundy productions in the UK and producing series for LWT and Sky.  In 1993 she set up offices in Spain for Reg Grundy and produced a series for Tele Madrid.   She then worked on a weekly ‘live’ two hour children’s show for Scottish Television.  Edwina has also held posts at BBC Scotland, The Travel Channel and Southern Star.

Marius Van Straaten
Technical Director
Magus Visual
Marius van Straaten is a director of Visual Impact, South Africa, one of the leading providers of broadcast equipment in South Africa. He is passionate about training, and regularly presents workshops on cinematography, wild life, new technologies and high definition.  In addition to completing a higher diploma in Film & Video technology at the Pretoria Film School, Marius holds a BCom degree from the University of Pretoria. He also completed the Management Development Program at the Business School of the University of Stellenbosch where he won the Director’s Prize for best achievement in the course. Marius is also active as a videographer and stills photographer and uses these skills to test new formats and developments. Currently he is working on capturing high resolution HD time lapses using stills cameras. Marius functions as a technical director on international projects such as Fear Factor, The Batchelor, Scream and the Red Bull Music academy.  He was the Digital Image Technologist on the first HD feature produced in Africa, Promised Land, as well as numerous commercials shot on HD. Marius’s focus is primarily on digital formats and bridging the gap between film and digital. One of his aims is to apply HD as a mechanism to democratize filmmaking.

Janet Han Vissering
Senior Vice President of Development and Co-Production
National Geographic Channels International
As Senior Vice President of Development and Co-Production for National Geographic Channels International, Janet Han Vissering is responsible for commissioning over 250 hours of original programming per year for broadcast in 166 countries, 320 million homes and 34 languages worldwide. As part of Development, she has been responsible for developing key programmes such as Engineering Connections, Big Bigger Biggest and Animal Autopsy among other highly rated shows. In addition, Vissering manages NGCI’s relationship with strategic co-production and output partners in the US, Europe, Asia and Latin America. In her new role, Vissering manages a team to source and develop all third party original programming, including the negotiation of output deals. Vissering also develops alternative funding sources including non-profit organizations, private organizations and state-funded associations. Previously she was SVP of Strategic Development and Co-finance for seven years. Prior to acquiring her current position, Vissering served as Vice President of International Acquisitions at NGCI from August 1998 to March 2000. She joined NGCI from Discovery Networks International, where she was Head of Program Acquisitions and Development from 1995 to 1998. In this post, she was responsible for managing the acquisition and development of over 2,500 program hours annually. She was also in charge of overseeing co-production agreements at Discovery, working closely with independent producers and companies in both the domestic and international markets. Vissering joined Discovery Communications, Inc. as a Regional Marketing Manager for The Learning Channel, Affiliate Sales and Relations in March 1993. Prior to this, she was a public affairs specialist for the Department of the Navy, based in Sasebo, Japan. A graduate of the University of Maryland in College Park, with a major in International Relations/Business, Vissering is a native of Korea and speaks Korean fluently. National Geographic Channels International (NGCI) invites viewers to live curious through its smart and innovative programming that questions what we know, how we view the world and what drives us forward. A business enterprise owned by National Geographic Television (NGT) and FOX Entertainment Group, NGCI contributes to the National Geographic Society's commitment to exploration, conservation and education through its six channels: National Geographic Channel, National Geographic Channel HD, Nat Geo Wild, Nat Geo Wild HD, Nat Geo Adventure and Nat Geo Music. Globally, National Geographic Channel (including NGC U.S. which is a joint venture of NGT and Fox Cable Networks Group) is available in more than 320 million homes in 166 countries and 34 languages. For more information, please visit www.natgeotv.com.

Ellen Windemuth
Managing Director
Off the Fence
Ellen Windemuth is the founder and owner of Off the Fence. After graduating from Brown University in the U.S., Ellen worked in sales and co-productions for leading international companies such as Fremantle and Atlantis before starting OTF in Amsterdam in 1994.  She is on the board of the Wildscreen Trust, the Jackson Hole Film Festival and the Wild Talk festival in South Africa, and on the Steering Committee of the World Science Congress. Ellen has developed and executive produced a large part of OTF’s factual television library and won many international awards through the years.  She is very active in coproduction’s, which remain a vital part of the company’s activities. Off the Fence creates and markets programming with a focus on quality, integrity and innovation. Off the Fence's 8-person sales team covers all territories worldwide. As true non-fiction specialists, the entire team is very familiar with the production process and the company is proud of its close relationships with the filmmakers it represents. Our catalogue contains over 2500 hours of natural history, science, health, adventure, history and social documentaries. Besides being the exclusive distributor of NHNZ’s much awarded catalogue of over 325 hours, OTF was recently appointed to distribute the excellent HD catalogues from the award-winning US broadcaster Smithsonian Networks’, WEtv & Rainbow Media. OTF is known to represent some of the best independent factual producers in the world and in addition to this develops, finances and co-produces international non-fiction programmes. The company works hands-on with established production companies as well as talented newcomers to create internationally marketable specials and series. OTF has a long track record of co-productions with broadcasters such as Discovery, NHK, Animal Planet, Arte, ZDF, BBC, NDR, France 5, BR and National Geographic. This has resulted in over 260 hours of co-produced and acquired programmes in the past four years. In 2005, Off the Fence launched a UK production arm based in Bristol, followed by production and sales offices in Singapore and Cape Town in 2007. In the Fall of 2009 we opened offices in New York and Mainz.

Mark Wild
Director International Development
National Geographic Television
Mark Wild is Joint Managing Director and handles creative and production aspects of Artists in Motion. Mark is a multi-award winning producer and director of global television programmes with 20 years of experience in the UK film and television industry. He cut his teeth in advertising and architectural photography around the globe before receiving a scholarship to the Joint Board of Film Industry Training. Recently Mark served as Director of International Development in the London office of National Geographic Television and prior to this, as Head of Production and Development for Animal Planet International with the Discovery Channel. To date, he has garnered 115 awards for the programmes and films he has helped to develop and create including “Ocean Voyagers” (Japanese Film Festival 2009); “Meerkat Manor” (Wildscreen 2008); and “Crime Scene Wild” (Jackson Hole 2007). He was awarded a fellowship to the Royal Geographical Society for his services to exploration and film and has worked with the Kings Fund in England for the last decade in their Leadership Programmes.