John Downer (born 1952) is a British film producer of nature documentaries for television and cinema. He is best known for his contributions to the nature documentary series BBC Wildlife Specials.
John Downer | |
|---|---|
| Born | John Leslie Keith Downer 1952 (age 71–72) |
Education and career
editJohn Downer was born in 1952 in London.[1] He studied zoology at Swansea University.[2] He started his professional life in 1981 at the BBC Natural History Unit,[2] later creating his own production company John Downer Productions headquartered in Bristol.[3] Downer pioneered a number of techniques for wildlife filmmaking, in particular by putting cameras on birds, and by filming birds from the air using various airborne filming platforms.[3]
Film and television credits
edit- 1988: Supersense, six-part series
- 1991: Lifesense, six-part series
- 1992: Digging in the Dirt, music video for Peter Gabriel, awarded a Grammy
- 1999: Supernatural: The Unseen Powers of Animals, six-part series
- 2000: Lions - Spy in the Den, part of BBC Wildlife Specials
- 2002: Weird Nature, six-part series
- 2003: Elephants - Spy in the Herd, part of BBC Wildlife Specials
- 2004: Bears - Spy in the Woods, part of BBC Wildlife Specials
- 2004: Pride, feature-length documentary
- 2007: Trek - Spy on the Wildebeest, part of BBC Wildlife Specials
- 2008: Tiger - Spy in the Jungle, three-part series, part of BBC Wildlife Specials
- 2009: Swarm, two-part series
- 2010: Polar Bear - Spy on the Ice, part of BBC Wildlife Specials
- 2010: Psyche, music video for Massive Attack[2]
- 2011: Earthflight, six-part series
- 2013: Penguins - Spy in the Huddle, three-part series, part of BBC Wildlife Specials
- 2014: Dolphins - Spy in the Pod, part of BBC Wildlife Specials
- 2017: Spy in the Wild
- 2019: Serengeti, six-part series
Read also
edit- Downer, John (1989) Supersense – Perception in the Animal World. Henry Holt, New York
References
edit- ^ Jenifer Warren: John Downer: Natural Highs. Los Angeles Times, December 8, 1991.
- ^ a b c BBC Earth: John Downer's Biography, retrieved in October 2020
- ^ a b Interview with EARTHFLIGHT Filmmaker John Downer. PBS Nature, August 12, 2013.