Mark Wild – Listen to the Podcast.

Missed out on the Coventry Conversation which feautured Animal Planet’s Mark Wild? Listen to the full podcast by following the link below.

http://podcasting.services.coventry.ac.uk/podcasting/index.php?id=346

The Invention of ‘Meerkat Manor’

A renowned producer and Head of Production and Development for Animal Planet International, Mark Wild, explained how the award winning ‘’Meerkat Manor’’ series came about from the need to make a hit for the channel.

He and his co-workers brainstormed the idea of making something “that was a returnable series that we can all lock into”, as Wild put it on yesterday’s Coventry Conversation.

Because nobody had ever stepped into the meerkats’ world and taking advantage of  the creative space given to him by his boss, Wild teamed up with Cambridge University, using their research on meerkats for the last 15 years in the Kalahari desert, South Africa.

“We had a common idea of how we were going to push the boundaries of natural history”, Wild described on how they set out to do the documentary.

Using the principles of film making, driven by a story and character, the series started as a desperate housewives soap opera, where meerkats were character actors that they just followed. Writes Radina Choleva…

Keeping Up With the ‘Cov Cons’?

This afternoon don’t miss out on the ‘Coventry Conversation’ starring Mark Wild, former commissioning editor of Animal Planet. Get answers to all those questions you’ve been asking yourself about Meerkat Manor at 1.00pm in ETG34 (Ellen Terry Building).

On Thursday, TV legend and fine art graduate Paul Watson will converse with the ever-growing audience of the Coventry Conversations. BAFTA, RTS and Grierson Award Winner will talk about why he is lauded by some and hated by others; here it all from the documentary master.

We hear about and see Google everywhere we go; it’s ever-present with its growing demand. Lately Google has been getting into a bit of trouble it seems. Can Peter Barron clear its name from all the criticism? Find out on Friday, 12 November at 1pm in Ellen Terry. CU Today will also make sure that you won’t miss out on the excitement; follow our live blog to keep up with the action. Writes Natasha De Silva…