Most kids of the 90s would remember watching Discovery Channel or National Geography to understand nature and wildlife better. With time, and the advent of the internet, such shows may seem irrelevant. However, the executive producer of ‘Planet Earth III’ told IndiaToday.In that his show is much more than what encyclopedias and Google have to offer. In an exclusive interview, Mike Gunton shared details about the new season of the Sony BBC Earth show, hosted by Sir David Attenborough.

He said that contrary to popular belief, documentaries are not just for information. They give the audience a closer look at the world.

“I think these shows are still relevant. We do the hard work for you; we take all this knowledge, information and experience, and we, I can put it in better words, package it into a story that goes straight to your heart and mind. So, you’re learning, but not just facts but about relationships, about bigger concepts. And, I think, that’s a lot harder to do than going on the internet. The internet is all about the little nuances. Now, it’s still good to have the little nuances, but they always have to be in service of a story,” Mike Gunton told IndiaToday.In.

“And I think ‘Planet Earth’ works on a very emotional level, which is why there’s a bit of drama attached to it. When you watch it, the way it’s filmed, the camera is always moving. So, it’s just like a drama. If you watch a film or a TV drama, the cameras are not stationary; they’re moving all the time. You get different perspectives. I think it’s the coming together of documentary and drama. Now, the difference, and this is why it’s still a documentary, is that what you’re doing is true, it’s authentic. You’re factual rather than just telling facts,” Mike said.

While he talked about evolving technology and filmmaking, we discussed the perspective of a career in wildlife. We told the producer how a character in the 2009 blockbuster ‘3 Idiots’ was set to become an engineer but had dreams of becoming a wildlife photographer, much to the dismay of his parents. So do projects like ‘Planet Earth’ help people around the world become more aware and pursue a career in wildlife? Mike Gunton revealed that he started working on the genre after watching Sir David Attenborough as a teenager, and found it “incredibly romantic, exciting and amazing”.

Mike Gunton said, “You see the animals, you travel, you make films, it’s all glamorous, everything else. It’s a common feeling. When I meet people, they always tell me, you have the best job in the world. I think it’s one of the best jobs in the world, but it’s not as glamorous as people see it from the outside. It’s definitely a very niche field, because there are only a limited number of projects like this that can be made, and they’re expensive.”

“A big blockbuster film like ‘Planet Earth’ requires an enormous amount of time, resources, contacts, effort and infrastructure,” he said.

In this context, he also said that the younger generation does not look at this sector from the same perspective as he did.

“They see it more as communication, content creation. So, they do it a lot more, even on the phone. They make their own little films with their digital cameras and are like one-man bands. And not just films, today there are so many more opportunities to tell stories about nature through podcasts, social media or radio programs. When I started making films as a teenager, I had to buy my own film and camera, and I could only shoot a little bit and had no means of showing it to the world. So in some ways, I think there are better opportunities for people now,” Gunton said.

When asked if it is possible to make a living from it, Mike Gunton described it as ‘difficult’. However, he encourages the new generation to tell stories about nature to their friends and the generation after them. He said, “I think this is how we will continue the cycle.”

‘Planet Earth III’ is currently streaming on Prime Video.