I have been dying to talk about this for close to a year, and now that the show is finally hitting the airwaves, I can! After Hiroko and I filmed that giant salamander mini-documentary for National Geographic several years back, they asked us to provide content for an all-new television show then in development. Now it's here. "Nat Geo Amazing!" is a 10 episode series that airs Friday evenings at 7:00 (EST) on the National Geographic Channel, starting this July 9th.
It's an "omnibus" style show, with each episode comprising a bunch of short segments. We handled the ones filmed in Japan. This represents our first foray into primetime programming, so you can imagine we're pretty excited about it.
What we tried to do: deliberately go a little deeper than the usual "Japan Cool" fluff. Did we succeed? We didn't get final cut on any of the bits we filmed, so you'll have to judge for yourself. But I like to think our little segments prove that the short form (essentially the TV equivalent of a blog post) can go deeper than just sound bites. Here's a list of the ones we worked on.
Bionic Turtles
After rescuing a loggerhead turtle named Yuu-chan from a shark attack, researchers from the Sea Turtle Association of Japan work with a human prosthetics company to rebuild her better, faster, and stronger than before. Watch the segment here!
Okotanpe, the Body Juggler
Okotanpe is a master of the art of contact juggling, able to manipulate a heavy crystal ball in mesmerizing ways. We follow him into the heart of darkest Harajuku, where he draws massive crowds. Watch the segment here!
Yabusame Archers
The art of yabusame -- archery on horesback -- has mesmerized crowds in Japan for close to a millenium. We follow an otherwise normal-looking salaryman who has managed to master this notoriously difficult sport.
The Monkey Whisperer
Dr. Nobuo Masataka is a professor of animal behavior at Kyoto's primate research institute. Can he establish communications with Japan's famed snow monkeys, or are they too relaxed from kicking it in the hot tub? Tune in to find out.
Tetsuro Shimaguchi: Samurai Swordsman
Everyone loves samurai movies, but very few realize just how much work goes into executing the swordfight scenes. So we set one up ourselves with the help of professional tateshi Tetsuro Shimaguchi! His film credits include choreographing the swordplay between Uma Thurmond and Lucy Liu at the climax of "Kill Bill." Watch the segment here!
How to Make a Giant Monster Movie
Giant monster movies, called "kaiju eiga" in Japan, are beloved the world over for their unique approach to special effects. But even in the digital age, sometimes the best way to film a monster stomping a city is by filming a monster stomping a city. Director Tomoo Haraguchi shows us how it's done on the set of his latest film, "Death Kappa." Watch the segment here!
Cool, I'll keep an eye out for it.
Posted by: Jason Fetters | July 06, 2010 at 04:04 PM
The previews look good... happy you got major exposure for this. My kid-dream was always to shoot for natgeo, so I am rather jealous. [though I don't do vid anyway ;) ]
Posted by: ArthurFrDent | July 07, 2010 at 01:05 AM
These look great! I can't wait to watch!!!
Posted by: Liesje | July 07, 2010 at 02:09 AM