- ‘Sri Lanka – Leopard Dynasty’ documentary broadcast on ‘Nat Geo Wild’ wins international award
By Shailendree Wickrama Adittiya
Shining the international spotlight on Sri Lankan wildlife is Sri Lanka – Leopard Dynasty, a 45-minute wildlife documentary that commenced international broadcast earlier this month, and is currently being shown in countries such as Germany and India on Nat Geo Wild.
The documentary, which premiered in Sri Lanka, took two years to complete. It is unique, as it was entirely produced by a local crew – a change from the typical, as most wildlife documentaries about Sri Lanka broadcast on international platforms are by international companies and foreign film crews. This makes Sri Lanka – Leopard Dynasty the first wildlife documentary produced by a Sri Lankan production company (Aegle Creations) to be aired on Nat Geo Wild.
The crew added that Sri Lanka – Leopard Dynasty recently won the “Best Asia Feature” award at the Wildlife Conservation Film Festival in the US. The festival is held annually, where many renowned wildlife documentaries are screened each year. Out of these stellar global productions, Sri Lanka – Leopard Dynasty was named the best feature from Asia, beating other regional documentary productions.
The crew
Thivanka Rukshan Perera is an alumnus of the Academy of Art in the US, where he graduated with a degree in film production. His previous wildlife documentaries have been screened at numerous international film festivals, with Sri Lanka – Leopard Dynasty, his latest wildlife feature, acquired and screened by Discovery Channel.
The team stated that a special note must be made about the cinematographer, Dhanusha P. Bandara, as there are some exceptionally well-filmed sequences that capture the behaviour of Sri Lankan leopards. Bandara handled the filming alongside camera assistants Roshan Perera and Dilan Sigera, and made a special mention of the support he received from Dr. Mahendra Perera, without whom the wildlife documentary would not have been possible.
Speaking to The Morning Brunch, Bandara shared that since wildlife documentaries made to international standards have not been produced by local teams before, he faced various challenges sourcing equipment, especially those that were within their budget. He stated that some equipment had to be purchased just for the documentary.
Gaining knowledge or advice from those with experience in the country was also a challenge due to this, as few local cameramen had experience in filming such wildlife documentaries and could not provide information on setting up equipment, for instance.
“We have to get a permit from the Wildlife Department for filming. This is a must, and it includes a lot of rules, like not being able to step out of the vehicle. We must carry out our work without disturbing any of the animals. This is not only a rule, but an ethical practice,” Bandara said, adding that they must also work with natural lighting and predict the animal’s every move.
“Sometimes, even a deep breath can make the jeep move, which can be an issue when filming,” he said, highlighting the challenges they faced in the wild.
Wildlife documentaries
While stating that very few invest in this area in Sri Lanka, Bandara said: “Wildlife photography is at a high level, with both individual photographers and groups, but there is a huge gap between photography and videography. It’s mainly the cost that is an issue.”
However, he said the team is willing to share their knowledge and experience with anyone interested in going forward in this field.
Working on wildlife documentaries is something Bandara had to learn as well, as his career began in media, before moving to a production house, where he worked on short documentaries, company profiles, etc. Bandara then joined Dayan Witharana’s studio, where he worked for years as a videographer, and through whom he met Dr. Perera.
He also worked on wildlife footage for Thivanka R. Perera while the latter was in university. Once this was completed, the duo decided to do a more in-depth story, which eventually led to Sri Lanka – Leopard Dynasty.
Producer Dr. Mahendra Perera
Renowned oncologist Dr. Mahendra Perera is of the belief that Sri Lanka – Leopard Dynasty winning the “Best Asia Feature” award at the “Wildlife Conservation Film Festival” in the US and being broadcast on Nat Geo Wild might encourage producers to fund documentaries by local talent. He stressed that the main obstacle budding filmmakers face is the budget, but if producers believe that their cost can be recovered, and with the perk of seeing their productions broadcast on reputed channels, more producers might come forward. However, he added that international documentaries are a different playing field – before the production is shown on a major network, the producer has to obtain an insurance cover.
This presented a challenge – since few, if any, international documentaries are made in Sri Lanka, foreign insurance companies were initially hesitant to cover the film. But at the behest of their distributor (Autentic Distribution) who handled the international marketing of the documentary, the makers of Sri Lanka – Leopard Dynasty were able to obtain the necessary insurance. Dr. Perera noted that without insurance, channels such as Nat Geo or Discovery Channel would simply not broadcast a documentary, regardless of its quality.
Director Thivanka R. Perera
Thivanka R. Perera said that apart from personal accolades, the documentary is vital for raising awareness about the endangered leopard population in Sri Lanka. He believes that such documentaries make people look at the natural world differently. Natural history documentaries – by crafting empathetic narratives around animals – make the audience sympathise with the creatures on screen; and the more people care, the more likely they will be driven to conserve these species.
However, Thivanka believes that making wildlife documentaries will be an uphill task in the future. With the soaring cost of living in Sri Lanka, prices have risen exponentially, which has adversely affected their filming budget. He said that making a wildlife documentary now will be more expensive, but more important than ever before, purely for conservation purposes. He is hopeful that younger filmmakers will take up wildlife filmmaking, both as a storytelling tool and to raise awareness about Sri Lanka’s biodiversity.
Cameraman Dhanusha Bandara
Dhanusha Bandara believes that at a time when Sri Lanka is at a critical juncture, where the reputation of the country has been sullied, their documentary presents the bedraggled nation in a positive light. He said that foreigners might be compelled to visit Sri Lanka after watching the documentary on channels such as Nat Geo. He further added that there are many foreigners who admire the natural beauty and wildlife of Sri Lanka, and their arrival would be a much-needed boon to the tourism sector.