In perfect timing for Earth Day tomorrow, The Walt Disney Company has announced a brand-new series of nature documentaries under a new name, Disneynature. They’ve also created a Disneynature logo that’s a wonderful blend of the traditional castle-themed Disney logo with a natural mountainous terrain:
From go.com:
The Walt Disney Studios is launching Disneynature, a prestigious new production banner that will literally go to the ends of the earth to produce major big screen nature documentaries, Studios Chairman Dick Cook announced.
In the great tradition established by Walt Disney himself, Disneynature will offer spectacular entertainment about the world in which we live. The significance of the new banner goes beyond the studio, with The Walt Disney Company embracing this new initiative around the world through a number of its businesses, including publications, licensing, parks and educational outreach. Disney veteran Jean-Francois Camilleri, who has served as senior vice president and general manager for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures France will head the new unit. Disneynature will be based in France, where Camilleri and his team will oversee the initiation, development and acquisition of high quality feature projects.
Among the first films to be released domestically under the new label will be Earth, from award-winning British producer/director Alastair Fothergill, whose credits include the landmark Planet Earth series for the BBC and The Discovery Channel and The Blue Planet. Earth, which is produced by BBC Worldwide and Greenlight Media and co-directed by Mark Linfield, will take us on a tour of our home planet as we’ve never seen it before. It will be narrated by renowned actor James Earl Jones and will premiere theatrically on Earth Day, April 22, 2009. The film will also be released under the Disneynature banner in Latin America.
To go with the information about the upcoming documentaries, Disney has created a fabulous web site that really gives you that “big screen” feeling on your small screen at home. Not only does the site contain a clips and information from the upcoming new documentaries, but also a look back at the history of Walt Disney’s “True Life Adventures” series of nature films, including a brief interview with Walt himself. The site is definitely one to check out.
