Disneynature Oceans & The Crimson Wing: fishes and feathers in Blu-ray

In the world of nature documentaries, wildlife filmmakers had for many years resigned themselves to the fact that their professional lives would be bound to very tight budgets with distribution limited to television and nature film festivals. Not that this would condemn them to inferior product, but the opportunity to express their passion to a large audience utilizing the power of the large screen experience, for the most part, eluded them.

In 2008, Walt Disney Studios formed its Disneynature division for the purpose of bringing nature films back to a mainstream audience in a big way. Disney has a past history in nature documentaries - cute stories of lovable bears or foxes that were both entertaining and fashioned within the mold of Disney family fare. With Disneynature, the studio has returned with several sweeping theatrical productions that are also taking advantage of today's advanced home entertainment technology in the form of high definition Blu-ray and Internet connectivity.

Set for release on October 19th in Blu-ray/DVD combo packs, Disneynature's Oceans and The Crimson Wing are two remarkable films with stunning visuals but different approaches in storylines to motivate audiences to appreciate nature. One engulfs you with the breadth of biodiversity, while the other focuses on a precarious annual journey of survival.

Oceans, a follow up to Earth, Disneynature's first global-oriented release, takes a sweeping look at life in the sea. From majestic humpback whales to quirky, pugnacious mantis shrimp; to humongous, thunderous storm waves; to Isla Guadalupe's great white sharks (some familiar toothy faces from my years filming there), the film ladles one impressive scene atop another to paint a picture of spectacular variety in shape, color size, and temperament. Pierce Brosnan provides a narration that is not too wordy, avoiding competing for attention with the images on the screen.

While many nature film-goers may have seen similar underwater scenes in other films, the sheer variety all brought together in Oceans is overwhelming. As a nature filmmaker, I knew a lot about what went into the making of this film, produced by French-based Galatee Films: high definition video, 35mm film, elaborate underwater lighting rigs, camera cranes arms working from small boats, even remote controlled model helicopters mounted with cameras - enough technical wizardry to make any major action film envious. And yet, knowing this, I still found myself thinking over and over, How did they get that shot?

The Blu-ray transfer of the film is excellent and nothing is modified from the original wide-screen theatrical format - so even on a large flat screen, the video is letterboxed to match the theatrical original. The Blu-ray disc also provides an interesting variation on the "director's comments" found with many DVDs by offering Filmmaker Annotations which provides behind-the-scenes footage and backstory while the video is running.

With such a mosaic of dramatic aquatic images, the film's one weakness is the lack of a more cohesive storyline. The film is literally and figuratively all over the map, from big to small, from one side of the globe to another, there were brief scenes that, while probably taking many days if not weeks to shoot, seemed to be mere placeholders. So the "story" of Oceans is that of spectacular eye candy. It is a marvelous achievement visually and home viewers, particularly those unfamiliar with the ocean's biodiversity, will be as impressed as theater-goers were.



While having advance knowledge of what to expect with Oceans, I was totally unfamiliar with The Crimson Wing. It is the story of Africa's flamingos and their annual migration to the lakes in northern Tanzania to breed and raise their babies. Flamingos? Those goofy-looking pink birds? This couldn't hold my attention as a feature film.

I was more than pleasantly surprised. I was stunned.

Produced by Natural Light Films and Kudo Pictures, The Crimson Wing is a remarkable example of nature filmmaking. Capturing the birds in flight or congregating in the hundreds of thousands, the filmmakers transform the image of a silly plastic ornament on a Florida lawn into a graceful creature determined to flourish in an insufferably hot and hostile environment.

The Crimson Wing focuses on Lake Natron, where flamingos arrive following brief rains that breathe life into the shallow lake in the form of red algae - remarkably, the source of the birds distinctive color. As the summer heat increases, salts separate from the evaporating waters and literally form a salt island where the birds go to build nests; mounds of salty mud. The babies that hatch must then withstand an arduous trek to the lake shore marshes where they will feed, grow and ultimately take flight as the flocks disperse across Africa, only to return again the next year, the cycle repeating itself.

While there are plenty of Disneyesque scenes of cute baby flamingos stumbling through their first steps or nestling with their mothers, the film doesn't pull its punches in showing the precarious nature of their lives. Stalking predators like giant storks or a hungry mongoose are shown taking their fill - a reminder of the cold brutality of survival. Not avoiding this hard reality of nature only adds to the mystery and miracle of the migration, and the filmmakers succeed in maintaining a balance in tone: beauty in the face of severity.

While containing stunning visuals, The Crimson Wing also benefits from a more cohesive and personal story, one that is propelled by chronological events. The close interaction between mother and chicks helps to maintain focus as these flamingos go through their own "Circle of Life" - to borrow from another Disney film. Again, the Blu-ray transfer is excellent and so you have an entertaining combination of state-of-the-art visuals with a compelling story. This is what one would hope all nature films could attain.



In addition to the video of the original theatrical release and the Filmmaker Annotation feature previously mentioned, both Oceans and The Crimson Wing offer interactive menu features that, when the Blu-ray player is linked to the Internet, provide additional nature and conservation information that is updated via the online connection. Part of the strategy to promote adoption of the Blu-ray standard is the incorporation of the Internet - in essence, your Blu-ray player becomes a computer - and I expect we will see more and more creative uses of this interactive capability in the future.

Disneynature's Oceans and The Crimson Wing are worthy reasons for adopting Blu-ray as the next home video format. Enlightening viewers to the beauty, importance, and fragility of nature is a worthwhile mission for technology. As a conservationist, I am hoping that technology will provide solutions to help protect the planet. It can also help by simply showing us what we can not afford to lose.

Available on Blu-ray/DVD on October 19, 2010.

Oceana at COP15: NGOs getting the facts out

There are many worthwhile non-profit conservation organizations operating today (some would say too many, as over-proliferation can dilute the power of each group). Based on their available financial resources, some of these groups are singularly focused while others succeed at being more broad-based. To regular readers of this blog, you know that one of my oft-cited organizations is Oceana. Why? Because they have had measurable success at being international, comprehensive, media-savy, and are science-based.

At the recent Copenhagen Climate Conference (COP15), Oceana was a visible presence with media presentations and staff on hand for interviews and discussions. While what seemed to captivate the press, and by extension the public, was whether a binding agreement could be achieved between the participating nations, what also was taking place at the conference was the dissemination of a lot of information concerning climate change and its related effects: ocean acidification, impacts on and from commercial fishing, changes within the Arctic circle, and so on.

All this information was being provided to insure that delegates from participating nations had the latest and most accurate information. Unfortunately, what was "sexier" to the press was the protests, bickering, and diplomatic machinations taking place, particularly as the conference moved into its second week and the question as to whether an agreement would be hammered out moved to center stage.

Oceana has assembled several videos that illustrate their presence at COP15. Blowing their own horn? Sure, but why not? Particularly since media coverage was focused elsewhere. Click here to view the videos.

One of the videos is an overview of the impact of climate change on the Arctic Circle, narrated by actor and staunch ocean conservationist, Ted Danson. I have seen some of the changes to the Arctic firsthand, working with InMER.org in the summer of 2007 when we conducted a reconnaissance of the Northwest Passage. Assisting expedition leader Ed Cassano, I documented, both on video/still images and through interviews with Inuit tribal elders and government officials, what has been taking place over the years.

What at first appears to be desolate and formidable, the Arctic Circle is, in reality, a very vibrant but delicate ecosystem, the health of which having great implications for the rest of the planet. Several of the many warning signs we saw are subtle but alarming: shrinking summer sea ice, shrubbery and trees where there used to be only permafrost, the appearance of bees and other insects that had never been seen before - all are "canaries in the coal mine" that speak to bigger and more extensive worldwide changes in the near future.

In the informative application Google Earth (available at no charge; click here for details), throughout the area of the Northwest Passage (within the Arctic Circle, north of Canada), you can find several interesting pieces of visual/textual content supplied by InMER. I had the pleasure of producing several videos for this effort and would look forward to the opportunity to return to the Arctic again to further the cause for its protection.

The other videos on Oceana at Copenhagen center on interviews with dedicated staff members and scientists discussing issues ranging from ocean acidification to over-industrialization. One of the challenges in presenting these subjects in short form (IE: brief videos) is to arrive at a balance between presenting a simplified and oft-repeated message and providing technical information which can be lost on the viewer/listener. One of the videos, I thought, illustrated this balance well: an interview with Oceana science director Dr. Jeffrey Short who, with just a bit more information and an analogy or two, describes ocean acidification as something more than an obscure or academic concept for the average viewer.

Click here to view the videos.