Behind the Scenes with Wildlife Warriors

Behind the Scenes with Wildlife Warriors

Few words can describe what it's like to produce your own TV series. "Insanity" comes close. I am producer, that means I fund raise for the series and have to manage all the funds and the team. I recruited a production company to help me - Vivid Feature which is run by the amazing Kavila Matu. I also created the series, did the research, logistics, and I present, I even directed parts of it, and I market and promote it... it's a hell of a lot to do for one person. It's not how most producitons work. But I had no idea, afterall, my training is as an ecologist, not a film maker.

Most film makers would not have given this series a second glance. Afterall, Kenyan TV stations genearlly do not pay for content so it's very hard to make yor money back - unlike other drama shows that currently air on Kenyan TV.  

So, first you need to know why I did it. The answer is NECESSITY! There is currently no content in the world that shines a light on African conservation heroes and heroines at the front line. Why? Becuase most wildlife documentaries are made by and for a western or global north audience, who want to see themselves in their films so the presenters are naturally quite melanin deficient and generally not Africans.

Why do we need Africans on air? Because we are facing a planetary crisis and we need all hands on deck. Currently Africans are not being engaged nor recognized for what they can contribute.  Even if everyone bought an electric car, turned off all the lights, and planted a tree in the global north, no matter what, that would not stop the climate crisis. We need the southern continents on board to address the climate crisis.  That's why we need content that resonates with Africans, and anyone who isn't working towards this is simply delusional.