They may be extinct, but dinosaurs are truly alive and well in the public consciousness with Apple TV+ and BBC Studios partnering to produce a five-part nature documentary series. Prehistoric Planet explores what life was actually like during the Cretaceous period, which came to an end 65.6 million years ago. Each episode is devoted to a different biome and titled accordingly: ‘Coasts’, ‘Deserts’, ‘Freshwater’, ‘Ice Worlds’ and ‘Forests’, exploring various themes like family dynamics and mating.
Overseeing the project were executive producers Mike Gunton (senior executive, BBC Natural History Unit), and filmmaker Jon Favreau; sharing directorial duties were Adam Valdez and Andy Jones; MPC looked after the animation; and Jellyfish Pictures was responsible for the initial concept art and storyboards under the guidance of creative director Tom Brass.
Back in 2018, Jellyfish Pictures became involved with the project and in the process produced several hundred pieces of concept art and thousands of storyboard frames. “We had been talking to Mike Gunter and his directors for a couple of years about this show,” recalls Tom Brass. “Off and on they would come in and see us and various other visual effects companies. The story that turned into the Triceratops in the cave, which was in the ‘Forests’ episode, they had an
