Immersive, sensory, narrative. The viewer should BE THERE, not have something EXPLAINED. Television language that creates images in the mind. Short sentences. Active verbs. Wondering, but not naive. Scientifically grounded, but never academic. Show the world as wonder, without kitsch.
What this format covers
●Nature and ecosystems that surprise (the unexpected in the familiar)
●Expeditions and journeys of discovery with scientific core
●Indigenous cultures and their relationship to nature
●Animal behavior and ecology in unusual places
●Geology, geography, climate systems — made experiential
●Human-nature relationships that surprise or challenge
●European and international locations (often both combined)
What this format does NOT want
●Pure wildlife films without human dimension
●Historical documentaries without present-day connection or nature anchor
●Investigative formats or political reportage
●Current-affairs reportage without discovery/wonder moment
●Cultural formats without nature or science connection
●Purely academic or didactic approaches
●Topics with no visual potential
Visual expectations
Cinema look, 4K UHD. Drones, macro shots, slow motion, time-lapse, underwater footage. Spectacular landscapes, extreme close-ups of animals/plants. Contrasts: macro vs. wide shot, stillness vs. action. The film must be visually distinctive. Reference: BBC Natural History, but with European narrative stance (less spectacle, more poetry).
Expected exposé structure
Title + subtitle (evocative, not descriptive)
Logline (2–3 sentences: Who, Where, What is surprising)
Exposé body text as immersive narrative — the reader should SEE the film
Protagonist(s) with concrete biography
Visual execution / Technical execution
Production company, author, contact
Example productions
Im Reich der Koguis — Der magische Río Buritaca
Von Menschen und Kuhfladen
Der unbekannte Atlantik — Buckelwale vor Westafrika
Expedition Himalaya
Kirgisistan von Oben
Die Kraft der Nüsse und Kerne
Editorial notes
Co-production ZDF/ARTE. European perspective desired, but international locations possible and welcome. Protagonist must make a discovery or take the viewer on a discovery. Important: The pitch must be written cinematically — ARTE commissioning editors read hundreds of pitches. Only those that create an image in the first three sentences get read further. Rejected pitches (folder "Abwurf") usually fail on: lack of visual power, wrong format (reportage instead of discovery), or too little surprise in the topic.
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