Kingdom of Plants 3D with David Attenborough
A world invisible to the naked eye brought to life in stunning 3D.
Plants cover the Earth, yet their lives remain almost entirely invisible to us. They move, communicate, compete, and evolve — on a timescale and at a scale that the human eye simply cannot perceive. This three-part series, filmed over the course of a year at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, changed that.
Premiering on Sky 3D, the series saw David Attenborough deploy pioneering 3D time-lapse photography and cutting-edge macro techniques to reveal a world that had never previously been captured on film. Flowers bloom and strangle in real time. Carnivorous plants snap shut in less than a millisecond. UV-sensitive cameras expose the hidden patterns through which plants communicate with insects — a parallel dimension invisible to the naked eye. And in one of the series’ most extraordinary sequences, bats pollinate giant cacti in slow-motion 3D, seeming to fly directly into the viewer’s living room.
Filmed entirely within the unique microcosm of Kew Gardens — home to some 90% of all known plant species — the series moved seamlessly between the spectacular and the microscopic, from the world’s largest flower to seeds frozen for future generations in Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank. As Attenborough himself put it, the 3D experience was “entrancing, and hypnotically beautiful.”
Press
“Spectacular three-part series, the 3D is stunning. A thrilling new perspective. Watch it” Observer
“Attenborough’s enthusiasm and authority makes this irresistible, 3D at its most impressive.. irresistible” Daily Mail
“The most fetching use of 3D technology since Avatar.” The Evening Standard
“A national treasure navigating a national treasure.. Remarkable” The Guardian
Awards
IBC AWARDS 2011 International Honour for Excellence
BAFTA 2012 Best Cinematography