Eight-Part Series Revealing the Eight Basic Body Shapes of All Life to Air Next Year

MONTEREY, CA (October 23, 2000) -- Sea Studios Foundation and National Geographic Television have co-produced an eight-part television series called, The Shape of Life with Fujinon lenses and DVC Pro cameras used for both underwater and topside shooting. The Shape of Life is an eight-hour series that chronicles the rise and proliferation of the Animal Kingdom. The series combines natural history and documentary sequences to tell this new, dramatic story. Many of the animals filmed for The Shape of Life have rarely been photographed and much of what was captured is brand new to natural history programming.

The shoot took place in several exotic locations, including The Great Barrier Reef, New Caladonia, Indonesia, and the California coast. For all of the series' "natural history" sequences, which were shot primarily underwater, Fujinon's A10x4.8 zoom lens was used on Panasonic's 480P DVCPRO 50 camcorders. Pace Technology's housings were adapted for underwater filming. The Fujinon lenses were utilized in a number of unique shooting environments, which required a lens that was both durable and sharp.

Mark Shelley, Executive Producer and Director of Photography for Sea Studios Foundation, has been a Fujinon customer since 1983 and has always been extremely pleased with their performance. "Fujinon lenses are sharp," said Shelley. "They've worked in all the applications we¹ve put them in. We¹ve built camera systems that have gone from the deep ocean to shallow underwater situations, and we've always found that the product quality and technical support we receive from Fujinon has been critical in allowing us to customize our equipment to meet our special production needs. During this shoot, we found ourselves in some very hostile environments, and we weren't sure how our equipment would hold up. I was impressed by the robustness of the combination of Panasonic cameras and Fujinon lenses. They held up in every situation."

The producers at Sea Studios devised a pathway for acquisition through delivery that results in a high-quality 16:9 standard definition product (NTSC and PAL) as well as a viable High Definition product. Additionally, 3D animation was utilized that takes the viewer to places where cameras cannot venture. Through animation sequences, viewers will dive through the body of a starfish, glide into the microscopic world of cells and DNA, and travel back in time to encounter creatures from ancient worlds.

The Shape of Life will begin airing some time next year. The National Science Foundation, Packard Foundation and the Macarthur Foundation are all major contributors to the project.