Drone operator on Plimsoll Productions’ Wild Babies — the Netflix wildlife series following young animals through their first months of life. My contribution was remote filming in Samburu National Reserve across several shoots.
I handled the production end-to-end on the ground: secured all the permits, built a camp at the reserve, and filmed independently — sending low-res proxies of the rushes at night so the director could monitor progress remotely.
What it took
All filming permits cleared in-house. Conservancy and reserve access negotiated directly. Camp built on location to support the multi-shoot schedule. Drone flown at respectable distance throughout — the brief was to capture natural behaviour without affecting it, and the cut needed sequences where the animals were at ease rather than vigilant.
Outcome
Production won Outstanding Travel, Adventure and Nature Program at the 2023 Daytime Emmy Awards. The series was nominated for four further Daytime Emmys.
What the client said
During the Covid lockdown Barny filmed some stunning drone aerials in Kenya for our elephant sequence in Netflix's Wild Babies. It was a unique opportunity to capture footage of these animals when they were at their most relaxed. Barny was extremely professional, liaising on our behalf with the Director of the park to gain a filming permit and organising his own travel, food and accommodation. When filming, Barny always kept the drone at a respectable distance from the wildlife and as well as the animals, he was also able to capture some spectacular scenics. At the end of each day Barny would methodically update production on his progress and send over highlights of his footage. It was a great pleasure working with Barny and I would thoroughly recommend him for wildlife filming – in particular as a highly-skilled drone operator.
Other natural history work
