ZDF Studios announces three brand new co-productions with award-winning factual producer Doclights
Mainz, January 27th, 2025
ZDF Studios affiliate Doclights has begun production on three new nature documentaries, Hawaii - Water and Soul (3 x 50’), Indonesia – World of Wonders (4 x 50’) and Canada’s Wild Eastern Edge (4 x 50’).
From Labrador in the northern Atlantic to the stunning islands of the Indian Ocean to Hawaii and the Pacific, Doclights’ expert crews are filming the captivating wildlife that exists below and above the sea as well as the people who inhabit these isles.
Award-winning Doclights, renowned for producing high end unscripted content for international broadcasters including National Geographic, the History Channel, ZDF and ARTE amongst many others, will complete production by summer 2025. ZDF Studios is the international distributor for all three series.
Nikolas Hülbusch, Director Unscripted, ZDF Studios said: “It’s a great start to 2025 to have three exciting new titles commencing production from Doclights. Their skill in producing exquisitely filmed documentaries combined with superb storytelling will make this trio hot property for clients who value high quality content.”
Jörn Röver, CEO, Doclights said: “While these titles all focus on coastlines and islands with their surrounding oceans, they are extremely diverse. Rich in beauty and wildlife, we are exploring all they have to offer as well as hearing from the islanders who are the keepers of these fascinating, water locked pieces of land.”
Hawaii - Water and Soul, produced by Doclights in association with NDR, WDR, ARTE, ORF, NHK and ZDF Studios, is about the real Hawaii seen not only through the eyes of the locals, but also through those most at risk: Hawaiian wildlife. Viewers will see them in their natural habitat, experience the breathtaking nature and explosive volcanic power that this island has to offer. Presenting an untamed look on the beauty and the beast, the documentary explores the Pacific, seeing and hearing the world’s most magnificent creatures…singing humpback whales, sharks who swim with Hawaiians and spinning dolphins.
It is a habitat of superlatives that continues to astonish: the largest archipelago in the world, whose wildlife has yet to be extensively portrayed: in Indonesia – World of Wonders, produced by Doclights in association with NDR, ARD, Terra Mater and ZDF Studios, viewers can expect something truly unique. After years of meticulous preparation, the team has gained exclusive access. The films feature the first and possibly last footage of the endangered Sumatran rhinoceros, the family life of the elusive pygmy elephants in the jungles of Borneo, Komodo dragons overpowering a wild water buffalo, as well as many other spectacular and rare images – some of them captured for the very first time.
Canada’s Wild Eastern Edge, produced by Doclights in association with NDR, ORF and ZDF Studios, follows Canada’s east coast from the vastness of Labrador and Saint Lawrence to Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. In three parts, the focus is on superlatives: the oldest mountain range in the world, the avenue of icebergs and the highest tidal range. Labrador, dominated by ice where seals raise their young and Inuit hunt for shellfish, is the only place where Canada’s black bears meet polar bears. The ocean around Newfoundland, called ‘The Rock’ by locals, attracts the largest gathering of humpback whales in the world. Its neighbour, Nova Scotia, a colourful spectacle in the autumn has the highest tides in the world in the Bay of Fundy. The island is also where groups of bald eagles hunt, moose come into heat in the forests and tens of thousands of grey seals give birth to their young. But global warming is causing dramatic changes in the region.
---
About ZDF Studios
ZDF Studios is a commercial subsidiary of ZDF, one of the largest TV broadcasters in Europe. Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Mainz, Germany, the ZDF Studios Group operates more than 30 direct and indirect subsidiaries and affiliates in Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom spanning TV production, distribution and services. The parent company, ZDF Studios, is responsible for global programme distribution, realisation of international co-productions, acquisition of licences and merchandising of successful programme brands under its own name, for ZDF and third parties. ZDF Studios has the largest German-language programme inventory in the world and a constantly growing range of international productions, consisting of series and mini-series, television films, documentaries and children's programmes.
The companies of the ZDF Studios Group cover the entire value chain from the development of scripted and unscripted TV content to production, marketing and monetizing, including TV and streaming licences as well as merchandising and online rights. The positioning of ZDF Studios as an integrated media company enables the development of innovative, outstanding and high-quality programmes and makes the Group an attractive workplace for German and international talent to flourish in a very inspiring and creative environment.
Contact ZDF Studios
Christine Denilauler (VP Marketing and Corporate Communications), ZDF Studios GmbH, Erich-Dombrowski-Str. 1, 55127 Mainz/Germany, tel.: +49 6131-9911130, email: christine.denilauler@zdf-studios.com, www.zdf-studios.com