Jackson Wild is thrilled to announce the recipients of the 2023 Legacy Award as well as the recipient of the 2023 Rising Star Award. This year’s award recipients share in Jackson Wild’s commitment to building an impact-driven community of filmmakers, creators, and conservationists, and have demonstrated a dedication to accelerating conservation practices through their media. They have been nominated by their peers and selected by the Jackson Wild Board of Directors.
“We are proud to recognize Victoria Stone and Mark Deeble with this well-deserved Legacy Award. For over 30 years, they have deepened our understanding of complex and intricately interdependent ecosystems through exquisitely beautiful storytelling that has ignited meaningful on-the-ground impact in conservation,” said Jackson Wild’s Executive Director Lisa Samford. “They have garnered 12 Jackson Wild Media Awards, including two Best of Festival Grand Teton Awards.”
This year’s Rising Star Award recipient is Hans Cosmas Ngoteya, a previous Jackson Wild Fellow based in Tanzania, who is a gifted cinematographer and National Geographic Explorer committed to accelerating regional filmmakers through mentorship and training opportunities. “We are so proud to witness Hans’ commitment to accelerating purpose-driven storytelling and mentorship so thoroughly from the beginning of his career,” noted Samford. “He and others who share his passion for conservation storytelling are influencing future filmmakers while refining their craft. They epitomize the brightest hope for future conservation filmmaking.”
Jackson Wild Legacy Award
Sponsored by The WNET Group’s Nature Series
Jackson Wild’s Legacy Award in Media recognizes visionaries who have demonstrated excellence and innovation in delivering world-class media. Whether innovative filmmakers, producers, or thought leaders, these individuals have embraced the power of media to shine a spotlight on species and the environment to protect our planet. Their work demonstrates a career dedicated to content surrounding conservation and environmental impact.
Victoria Stone and Mark Deeble are this year’s recipients of the Legacy Award. They are known for their independent story-driven films championing the importance of biodiversity and the interconnectivity of the natural world. For each film, they spend a minimum of 2 years camped in the wilderness with a small team. Their films are based on keen observation, and a deep understanding of natural ecosystems. They have won over 100 international awards in recognition of their artistry and wildlife storytelling. Throughout their careers they have used their films to support conservation. Following the launch of The Elephant Queen, a decade-long project and Apple’s first feature film acquisition for Apple TV+, they launched, with long-term Assistant Director Etienne Oliff, The Elephant Queen Outreach and Mobile Cinema and Theatre in Kenya. The film, translated into Swahili and Maa has been shown to over 120,000 people living in areas of high human-wildlife conflict.
The couple began their careers as underwater wildlife filmmakers filming around the world for Survival Anglia, the BBC and National Geographic. In 1987, they were invited to Serengeti by Alan Root. Their first East African film, Here Be Dragons, revealed the dramatic new behavior of giant Grumeti crocodiles leaping from the water to grab drinking wildebeest. Since then, they have worked in East Africa telling wildlife stories that have been shown in more than 140 countries with audiences estimated in excess of a billion. Sir David Attenborough called The Queen of Trees “A masterpiece!” Amongst its many awards are a Peabody and a Grierson. It followed Peabody and Emmy®-winning Mzima to join a filmography which includes Once Upon a Time in Tsavo, The Elephant & the Termite, The Elephant Queen, A Little Fish in Deep Water, Tale of the Tides, The Tides of Kirawira, and Devilfish.
Jackson Wild Rising Star Award
Sponsored by Wildstar Films
Jackson Wild’s Rising Star Award recognizes an emerging leader in nature, conservation, and science media. This award reflects ongoing and exceptional contributions to our planet while demonstrating leadership and innovation that promises extended impact in the future.
Hans Cosmas Ngoteya is a wildlife and conservation film director and cinematographer from Tanzania, a National Geographic Explorer, and co-founder of Ngoteya Wild, a Tanzanian wildlife and conservation storytelling organization where he has directed award-winning documentaries. He is also a co-founder of the Tanzania Wildlife Media Association (TaWiMA), an association of professional Tanzanian wildlife media creatives, where he mentors aspiring wildlife conservation storytellers. Additionally, he has co-founded Landscape and Conservation Mentors Organization (LCMO), which focuses on promoting, supporting, and improving community livelihoods through sustainable environmental practices.
His ultimate goal is to tell stories that will help to develop and explore practical solutions to solving emerging conservation challenges and help communities co-exist with wildlife.
About Jackson Wild
For over 30 years, Jackson Wild has been a catalyst for accelerating and elevating impactful storytelling at the nexus of nature, science, and conservation. Through innovative and collaborative community gatherings, skill-building initiatives, and mentorship programs, Jackson Wild creates an inclusive forum for storytellers to more deeply illuminate connections to the natural world and our collective responsibility to the wild.
Jackson Wild’s international board members include: African Wildlife Foundation, ARRI, ARTE France, BBC Studios, Blue Ant Media / Love Nature, Conservation International, Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, Doclights, GBH, Gorongosa Restoration Project, HHMI Tangled Bank Studios, Humane Society International, International Fund for Animal Welfare, National Geographic Content, National Geographic Society, Nature/WNET, Netflix, NEWF (Nature, Environment, Wildlife, Filmmaking), Off the Fence Productions, ORF Universum, PBS, RED Digital Cinema, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, Smithsonian Channel/Paramount, Sony Electronics, The Nature Conservancy, Terra Mater Studios, Wanda Films, Wildstar Films, and World Wildlife Fund US.
Visit: jacksonwild.org |
