Serengeti: The Adventure
Endless plains - that's what Serengeti means in the Maasai language. 30,000 square kilometers of African Savannah shared between Tanzania and Kenya. Wildlife filmmaker Reinhard Radke spent two years in this wilderness in the hunt for spectacular images. It's the first German cinema film about the Serengeti after half a century. The most recent technology's been used. Footage with up to 2,000 frames per second opens up new worlds. Shooting a film in the Serengeti is a difficult task full of surprises and adventures.
The day starts early in the Savannah. You need to use the first light as many animals only hunt in the cool morning hours. Reinhard Radke is a biologist and he's been coming regularly to the Serengeti for 30 years. First he came on field trips, then for television and now a film. To get better footage a 4x4 has been converted into a camera platform. The roof's been strengthened and as a filming balcony every camera angle should be feasible. With such a large number of wildebeest the predators can't be far away... the difficulty is finding them.
Reinhard got footage of an extraordinary hunt and now it's time to think about his own food supply. Despite the vehicle's idiosyncrasies it proves to be a jack of all trades. There's a compartment for everything. The car has been equipped with everything that may be required for an impromptu overnight stay in the wilderness... in case it's too far to drive back to the base-camp.
The filmmaker's not alone; he's assisted by a lookout. His main job is to spot the film's main characters. You have to know the animals' behavior patterns very well for this job and Reinhard's sidekick does. Storm clouds gather in the evening. The overnight rain has turned the sandy tracks into deep mud. Even an off-road vehicle can get stuck, but help can be found even in the remotest areas.
This is an amazing documentary to watch! I had the great fortune of spending 6 months on an African Safari in '93. Not too many people back then. We saw all these animals up close . This filming with the high speed camera makes the pictures even better than real life. It is similar to when stereo sound and colour TV came about. Top marks for this doco.
Unfortunately one of the few places left with many animals, we will have them all killed off in 25 years
Totally amazing... I'm "wow'ed" by these images. I'm definitely going there someday.
Simply amazing and so mind expanding too. I literally felt like a little kid again on a roller coaster. I can't wait the for next epic like 'Planet Earth' using this technology.
This film about filming is a magnificent film because of the amazing footage that is thrown in to show what great work can be done.
Refreshingly simple narrative. Spectacular photography. A nice concise glimpse into the making of a film that I very much would like to see in its entirety.
There are so many amazing images captured that are beyond description. The footage of the wildebeests crossing the river is but one example.
With that said, I couldn't help but chuckle as I was reminded of so many chubby Sylvester Stallones, stealthily but abruptly emerging from the depths of a river in any number of his Rambo movies as the Hippos were filmed in slow motion doing just the same.
Thank you SeeUat Videos for this one. I would think anyone with an appreciation for photography, wild life & adventure travel will enjoy this one. I will look for the fully finished film.