Fremantle’s Wildstar Films is teaming up with wildlife filmmaker and scientist Dan O’Neill to launch a new YouTube channel that brings “the wonder of the natural world to digital audiences”.
The World is Out There will offer a combination of longer form documentaries following O’Neill on wildlife expeditions around the world, a monthly filmed podcast in which guests join him on a walk, and shorter, presenter-led films exploring extraordinary animal behaviour, surprising science and topical stories from the natural world.
Rebecca Wootton, COO, Wildstar Films says: “As audience habits continue to evolve, The World is Out There represents an exciting opportunity to extend Wildstar’s storytelling beyond traditional platforms and build a long-term digital brand.
“We’re thrilled to be collaborating with Dan O’Neill, whose expertise as a biologist and presenter, combined with his passion for exploration, makes him the ideal partner for this venture.
“Together, we have the opportunity to bring Wildstar’s Emmy Award-winning filmmaking to new global audiences, creating a platform that can grow and evolve alongside changing viewer behaviours while inspiring curiosity about the world around us.”
O’Neill added: “This channel is about bringing people as close to that feeling as we can, as authentically as possible. On YouTube we can show it all unfiltered: the embarrassing bits, the painful misses and the absolutely magic moments, so viewers can feel what it’s really like to be out there.
“All I’ve ever wanted to do is get people as excited about the natural world as I am, and I think the best way to do that is to make it entertaining.
“Whether it’s tracking tigers in the jungle, going for a walk with a guest on the podcast or unpacking some brilliantly horrible parasitic behaviour in an explainer, I want everyone to finish watching and immediately feel like heading outside to find something for themselves. It’s a big new chapter, and doing it with Wildstar, who are world leaders in wildlife filmmaking, makes it even more special and exciting!”