Specialist factual producer and distributor Off The Fence (OTF) has inked a one-year co-development...
Specialist factual producer and distributor Off The Fence (OTF) has inked a one-year co-development partnership with Amsterdam-based AI specialist Return to Earth Studio.
Under the deal, OTF and the newly launched creative studio will produce AI-powered storytelling projects.
The first project to come out of the new collaboration is What If Evolution… (3 x 60 mins), which will fuse the latest applications in generative AI video with OTF’s expertise in natural-history storytelling. A team of scientists and AI artists will work together to imagine the animals that might have evolved had the Earth’s history played out differently. The three-part series will “blend state-of-the-art technology, robust science and the latest thinking in palaeontology, genetics and evolutionary biology to explore the dynamic processes that have and will continue to shape life on Earth.”
Among the questions that will be addressed is how life would have evolved if the continents never split, and what hybrid creatures might have resulted if the animal species we know today had interbred with each other — or with our own species. The series’ leading scientists and biologists will also share their own evolutionary fantasies, making a case for their favourite counter-factual origin stories. Some of the concepts featured will explore scientifically plausible outcomes of environmental shifts or evolutionary pressures, while others — though more fantastical — will seek to inspire debate by illuminating fundamental biological principles.
Bo Stehmeier, CEO of OTF, said: “We’re at an inflection point, both in terms of AI and what audiences around the world expect from factual storytellers. We know there’s still huge demand for traditional blue-chip documentaries, particularly from older-skewing audiences. But in parallel, the data is showing us that younger demographics want their natural-history programming served up in a fresher, more visual, more surprising format. To deliver that, it’s vital that OTF partners with companies who are native to this brave new world — partners who have the creative and economic skills to operate in this environment but who also share our core corporate, environmental and social values. We believe that Return to Earth Studios is that partner and that, together, we will re-imagine the future of factual storytelling.”
The co-founders of Return to Earth Studio are creative director Laen Sanches and executive producer Tony Stearns. Sanches has been at the forefront of generative AI filmmaking since 2022, when his animated short film PLSTC won 20 international awards and was screened on Franco-German broadcaster ARTE. Stearns has more than 25 years of production experience at top creative agencies in the US and Europe.
Stearns said: “Return to Earth Studio has embraced AI as a means to a more efficient and sustainable production model, and enabler of thrilling new possibilities for visualising the what-if’s of our human imagination. We are honored to partner with the renowned storytellers of OTF to help them create fresh, never-before-seen content.”
Sanches said: “Imagining how life could have evolved differently is fascinating, but visualizing the details can be challenging. With the latest generative creative tools, we can now explore these possibilities with a new approach and greater precision. This allows us to study for example different shapes, textures, behaviors, and even sounds. Through our partnership with OTF, we’re excited to bring these visions to life and share them with the world.”
What If Evolution… will be introduced at The London TV Screenings, alongside OTF’s more traditional slate of premium natural-history programming, which this year includes two new feature docs currently in production. Last Mermaids of Korea looks at the ‘Haenyo’ – female divers who hold their breath for more than two minutes to depths of 20 metres hunting culinary treasures for restaurants. Beavers from Above goes to remote locations in the quest to find out what an invasion of beavers means on the frontline of climate change, doubling their number and taking over the entire western Alaskan tundra in the last 20 years.
read more
read less
Work with us! Whether you’re just starting out in TV or a highly experienced SP, we’re...
Work with us!
Whether you’re just starting out in TV or a highly experienced SP, we’re always on the lookout for talented people to join our team.
Please send a CV and cover note to recruitment@offthefence.com.
Or connect with us via LinkedIn
read more
read less
The international distribution arm of factual content specialist Off The Fence (OTF) has closed...
The international distribution arm of factual content specialist Off The Fence (OTF) has closed deals with Spanish broadcasters on the back of last month’s MIPCOM content market in Cannes. The sales were brokered by Emilia Gil Villegas, OTF’s sales manager for Iberia, Latin America and Hispanic US.
AMC Networks International Southern Europe (AMCNISE) has acquired more than 40 hours of premium factual programming, including several of OTF’s MIPCOM highlights. Pharaohs: Rise and Fall (6 x 60 mins), produced by RFP1 Productions for Go Button Media and otf studios, introduces viewers to the iconic figures that ruled Ancient Egypt, from the first pharaoh, Narmer, to the legendary Cleopatra VI. Leading Egyptologists and historians tell the 3,000-year story of these spiritual and judicial leaders, painting a vivid picture of the rise — and ultimate fall — of these gods on earth.
The AMCNISE package also features several other Go ButtonMedia/otf studios productions, including To Kill a Dictator (6 x 60 mins), which rewinds history to expose the plans and conspiracies that aimed to rid the world of some of the most ruthless dictators in history; season two of Cursed Histories, which explores unnerving locations, icons and events that are seemingly cursed; and Engineering Evolved, which looks at the transportation tech set to the move the world.
Among the archive-driven titles included in the deal are several of OTF’s best-selling military-history titles, including MIPCOM headliner Female Spies: Courage and Espionage in WWII (6 x 60 mins) from Perpetual Entertainment, which remembers the heroic women who overcame sexism to put their lives on the line for their country. CIC Production/otfstudios’ History 's Ultimate Influencers and Military Masterminds, INA/Histoire TV’s Flying Knights and Tile Films’ Invasion: The Normans are also headed for AMCNISE.
In a second deal with a Spanish public broadcaster, TV3-3Cat Catalunya has committed to two of OTF’s most popular new series: otf studios/EarthxTV’s Ocean Wonders, in which heavy-metal marine biologist Tom ‘the Blowfish’ Hird reveals the science behind some of the most intriguing mysteries of the underwater world; and Scenery’s Human Playground, fronted by renowned actor and sports fanatic Idris Elba, who sets off on a journey around the world to discover why humans love to play — whether on sand, sea, snow or tarmac.
Emilia Gil Villegas said: “The conventional wisdom is that premium factual is difficult to sell into the Spanish-speaking markets where sport and light entertainment are the focus. It is clear that the right documentaries about the right subjects, whether pharaohs, female spies or fascist dictators, cut across all cultures and demographics. That message was reconfirmed at MIPCOM, where our slate of new launches not only generated a real buzz but, as these deals demonstrate, real business.”
read more
read less
Scenery, a joint venture with Banijay Benelux, today announces thought-provoking documentary 'You...
Scenery, a joint venture with Banijay Benelux, today announces thought-provoking documentary 'You Need This', directed by Ryan Andrej Lough, produced by Academy Award-winner Adam McKay (Don’t Look Up) via Yellow Dot Studios, and Isidoor Roebers and Lea Fels producing with Scenery. The documentary has been acquired by ZDF Studios’ Off the Fence for worldwide rights across streaming, digital and broadcast platforms, for an anticipated 2025 premiere.
'You Need This' is an immersive saga exploring how consumerism and hyper-capitalism, born from the unbridled optimism of 1950s America, has evolved into a global system shaping our desires, identities, and behaviours. Conditioning the population to find meaning and status through endless consumption, this insatiable machine depletes our environment, strains our social bonds, and damages our well-being. Featuring insights from cultural figures and experts like best-selling writer Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, dream scientist Adam Haar-Horowitz, and lauded economist Juliet Schor, the film reveals the hidden forces manipulating our choices, and challenges us to break free, urging a shift toward more conscious and sustainable living.
Ryan Andrej Lough, director and producer at Hôtel Motion Pictures says: “I felt compelled to make this film after years of research on the topics within, disturbed by how consumer capitalism has reduced us to mere cogs in a system that causes more waste, division, and destruction than anything else in history. This 20th-century invention now dominates our lives, manipulating us without our awareness and profiting from the destruction of the planet and society.”
Adam McKay adds: "The film reveals that it's not cultural or political divisions that have turned our world upside down, but the relentless quest for corporate profit fuelling consumerism. Just as the film delves into the bleak impact of global consumption; it captures something remarkable: a growing awareness as people begin to wake up to the reality of the system we’ve been trapped in."
Isidoor Roebers and Lea Fels, Producer at Scenery say: “You Need This is a powerful wake-up call, offering a critical lens on the hyper-capitalist machine so deeply engrained in our culture, we barely notice its influence. The film pushes us to confront the real cost of our consumption and invites audiences to envision a future where the planet takes priority over profit. With Off the Fence’s backing, this documentary will ignite a global conversation about our shared economic and environmental future.”
'You Need This' is narrated by comedy writer and actor Serra Naiman. It is produced by Adam McKay with Yellow Dot Studios, Isidoor Roebers and Lea Fels with Scenery, and Tyler Owen and Cecilia Butler with Hôtel Motion Pictures. The film is Executive Produced by Yellow Dot’s Staci Roberts-Steele and Hôtel Motion Pictures’ Benjamin Rednour.