Success at Wildscreen 2012

And the “Green Oscar” goes to: Terra Mater Factual Studios

Vienna, October 2012 – Great success for Terra Mater Factual Studios: at Bristol’s Wildscreen, the world’s biggest nature film festival, the production ‘Hummingbirds – Jewelled Messengers’ was awarded the Jury’s Special Prize. The Golden Pandas – also known as the “Green Oscars“, due to their acknowledged prestige – are given out on a biannual basis.

“I am most delighted. This is, without doubt, the most crucial prize of my career so far“, states CEO Walter Köhler. “To receive this high honour, especially in Bristol, home of BBC’s Natural History Unit, proves to me that Terra Mater Factual Studios are on the right track.“ The prize was accepted by TMFS Head of TV Sabine Holzer and the documentary’s director Paul Reddish. The reception of the award during the great gala on Thursday evening was met with applause.

Success at Wildscreen Festival 2012: The Jury’s Special Prize

“It is particularly satisfying that ‘Hummingbirds’ received this award, as this documentary was amongst the first we started – just two months after our launch. It was an in-house production through and through, with contributions from the engineering team of Red Bull Media House in Salzburg“, remembers Köhler. The documentary is already a big seller. At MIPCOM (October 2012, Cannes) the film dedicated to the superlative birds was acquired by National Geographic US, France Television, NDR in Germany and various other broadcasters around the world. Köhler: “I am curious as to whether the BBC might be tempted to go for it now.“

Sir David Attenborough, grand seigneur of nature films, who participated in the English version of this TMFS-documentary agrees, “In technical terms, this is one of the most advanced productions I have ever seen in my career, which extends over 60 years. Generally speaking, it is the most excellent film on hummingbirds by far. This film is the whole package.“

By the way: this was not the first prize for the remarkable birds. ‘Hummingbirds – Jewelled Messengers’ has already been honoured by festivals in Belgium, France and Spain. Köhler: “One and a half years after our launch we’re already playing in the major league. Due to this ongoing success we are very optimistic about the future and continue to work assiduously on our projects, which will also bring us to the big screen – the cinema.“