Disney+ series review: ‘EPIC ADVENTURES with BERTIE GREGORY’ is Nat Geo’s new jaw-dropping series.

Part wildlife and part adventure show, follow the escapades of young National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory as he travels the world capturing extraordinary footage of wild animals. Using a combination of technical wizardry, secret fieldcraft and extreme perseverance, he and his team try to overcome the challenges and dangers and get as close as possible to wildlife on its own terms.


One of the most immersive cinematic nature series ever made, Nat Geo’s Epic Adventures with Bertie Gregory is a wow. I was in relentless awe of the up close and personal footage of the arctic life, be it takes, seals, penguins, and much more.

To do the show justice, I suggest watching on the largest screen you can find. Bertie and his team face dangerous temperatures and ocean currents. You’ll fly into the air with high-definition drones above whales and hear the wicked blustering of incoming storms. You’re right alongside Bertie as he navigates the seas, moving about the ship’s nauseating rolling inner sanctum. He fearlessly plunges into the freezing waters. Without proper protection, a human would die in minutes. But the water is the least of Bertie’s problems as a feisty leopard seal gets a bit too close. You will gasp when you witness the eye-popping ariel view of fin whales feeding.

A Fruit bat resting in a tree, giving itself a good clean after a busy night foraging. (Credit: National Geographic/Bertie Gregory for Disney+)

And this is just the beginning of Episode 1 of Epic Adventures with Bertie Gregory. With four more to go, the 28-year-old British wildlife filmmaker and National Geographic Explorer takes audiences into places few have gone before. From the treetops of Zambia to the film African crowned eagles to the waters of Cocos Island in search of the 14 different species of sharks. You’ll be in awe as you learn things you never knew before. It’s a perfect show for the entire family.

The drone in flight, capturing epic shots of the Kasanka Fruit bats. (Credit: National Geographic/Sam Stewart for Disney+)

Episodes Available:

TRACKING OCEAN GIANTS

National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory leads a team across the infamous Drake Passage, one of the world’s most dangerous stretches of ocean, to the remote and windswept Elephant Island. His mission: to find and film one of nature’s greatest wildlife spectacles, a feeding aggregation involving hundreds of gigantic fin whales, the second largest animal ever to have lived.

BATTLE OF THE BEASTS

National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory and his team are in Zambia, Africa, trying to film one rare moment when a pride of lions takes on one of their most formidable foes – the mighty cape buffalo. 

SHARK ISLAND

Bertie and his team travel to the sharkiest place on Earth to film one of the biggest schools of sharks ever as hundreds of hammerheads join in a mysterious underwater dance. To get close to these super-sensitive sharks, Bertie will have to dive in stealth mode.

The father crowned eagle comes home with food for the nest, the mother greets him. (Credit: National Geographic/Bertie Gregory for Disney+)You can catch EPIC ADVENTURES WITH BERTIE GREGORY exclusively on Disney+.

EAGLE’S REIGN

Every year up to 10 million fruit bats descend upon a small, remote forest in Zambia to take full advantage of a fruit boom—but they don’t go unnoticed by the local eagles. After capturing some tender moments between a crowned eagle mom and her chick, National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory sets off to film these powerful predators hunting bats.

DOLPHIN QUEST

National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory is heading to the mighty Pacific Ocean off the coast of Central America. He’s on a quest to find and film one of the greatest spectacles the high seas have to offer—a superpod of several thousand spinner dolphins. Searching in the largest wilderness on Earth isn’t easy and leads to some mind-blowing animal encounters.


You can catch EPIC ADVENTURES WITH BERTIE GREGORY exclusively on Disney+.


 

The Disney+ Original Series from National Geographic ‘EPIC ADVENTURES with BERTIE GREGORY’ Premieres Disney+ Day on September 8th

The face of a new generation of aspirational adventurers and natural history filmmakers, 29-year-old National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory takes viewers on epic and nail-biting journeys that push into the most spectacular and secretive corners of our wild world!

Armed with leading-edge film technology, the Disney+ original series EPIC ADVENTURES WITH BERTIE GREGORY, from National Geographic, breaks the mold of the traditional natural history program by telling extraordinary, real-life animal stories and taking viewers with him for every beat of the action. For weeks at a time, the charismatic BAFTA Award-winning cinematographer immerses himself into the animals’ lives to capture the untold stories of iconic creatures living in some of the harshest environments on our planet.

This season, we will see Bertie braving the icy worlds of Antarctica in search of the biggest gathering of whales ever filmed and coming face-to-face with specialist buffalo-hunting lions in Zambia. In this multipart adventure series, he will take audiences on an ambitious odyssey across the globe, showcasing the natural world at a time when it faces its greatest challenges.

The series has also been picked up for a second season, which is filming now.


The Disney+ Original Series from National Geographic Premieres Disney+ Day on September 8th

Check out images from Episode 1 “Eagle Reign”


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About Bertie Gregory
Bertie Gregory, a wildlife filmmaker and photographer in his twenties, channeled his childhood obsession with wildlife into photography. Early in his career, photos from this obsession earned him recognition, including being named a National Geographic Young Explorer, Youth Outdoor Photographer of the Year, and Zenith Scientific Exploration Society Explorer. He began assisting legendary big cat photographer Steve Winter on assignment for National Geographic after graduating with a zoology degree from the University of Bristol in 2014. Bertie has since shot documentaries for Nat Geo WILD (Mumbai’s urban leopards and caiman hunting jaguars) and BBC Planet Earth. Gregory’s first solo assignment for National Geographic, tracking and filming the elusive coastal wolf on Vancouver Island’s west coast, became the basis for Nat Geo WILD’s first digital series, wildlife. All of this happened before his 24th birthday. Bertie has recently completed work on a new National Geographic digital series set in South Georgia. Bertie is the next generation explorer, who is standing on the shoulders of Walt Disney, Marlin Perkins, and David Attenborough, and will take us on an epic and heart-warming journey in this new upcoming series.


 

National Geographic and Disney+ review: ‘OWN THE ROOM’ is at the crossroads of passion and presentation.

OWN THE ROOM

Directed by Emmy® Award-Winning team behind Science Fair, Cristina Costantini and Darren Foster, OWN THE ROOM chronicles five ambitious students from disparate corners of the planet and the victories and setbacks they face as they take their budding business ventures to Macau, China to compete in the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards. Santosh is from a small farming town in Nepal; Alondra works the register at her family’s bakery in Puerto Rico; Henry is a programming wiz from Nairobi; Jason is a marketing machine from Greece; and Daniela is an immigrant escaping the crisis in Venezuela, taking on the chemical industry from her lab at NYU.

Every year, students represent each country in an entrepreneurial pitch competition where 1st prize is $100,000. The Global Student Entrepreneur Awards is a life-changing opportunity. In Own The Room (filmed in 2019) New York by way of Venezuela, Nairobi, Nepal, Puerto Rico, and Greece, were represented by Daniela, Henry, Santosh, Alondra, and Jason. You will absolutely fall in love with all five of them. While these young entrepreneurs are unique in personality and ideas, their dedication is familiar and infectious. Sustainability, housing, well-being, accessibility, and communication are merely the broad categories for each of their pitches. With intimate sit-downs and real-time competition footage, this film immerses the viewer in this global, high-stakes competition.

An intriguing highlight of Own The Room is the fact that all five students have the love and encouragement of their parents. It was great to hear the families support each dream, instilling them with the confidence to succeed. Watching the preparation, their anxiety and excitement are visceral. You’ll be on the edge of your seat as you wait for their pitches in Macau. First, they must get past the semifinal round. Contestants are split between seven rooms. The winner of each room makes it to the finals. You won’t believe the last-minute obstacles that Henry faces. It’s simply exhilarating. As a viewer, you’re proud of these young people. They give you hope that our future is bright. Own The Room is an inspiring documentary.

National Geographic will premiere OWN THE ROOM on Disney+ on March 12, 2020.