I’m a self-shooting Producer/ Director. I’ve been working in factual TV programme making for nearly 10 years specialising in natural history, science & adventure shows. I have worked across long and short form TV, radio & digital output for BBC Online, BBC News, BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Radio 4, CBeebies, Discovery Channel & PBS: Nature.
I love working on content which bridges platforms & mixes genres. I’ve been lucky enough to have worked on presenter-led, live & high-end blue-chip productions. My work has taken me to many challenging environments including the high-altitude Himalayas & the remote sub-Antarctic islands.
I’m passionate about telling stories from the natural world covering science and natural history. I love finding & telling stories about our planet which not only amaze but inspire people to take steps to protect it. I have a PhD in Environmental Chemistry and understand the importance of tackling complex science subjects and breaking them down in ways that are engaging, entertaining and educational. From animal intelligence and the theory of mind to the chemistry of pheromones, I relish the opportunity to unravel the science behind new discoveries & reveal them to new audiences.
My TV Broadcast credits include Super Smart Animals, Planet Earth II, Springwatch, Autumnwatch, and Animals Behaving Badly.
Alongside my TV work I’m also an experienced scuba diving instructor, trainee mountain leader & I’m actively involved in a number of youth development charities.
TESTIMONIALS
I was very lucky to team up with Emma to make an episode of BBC1’s Animals Behaving Badly. As an edit producer I came on board pre-edit to find a show that was already in great shape, thanks to Emma’s hard work and excellent judgement.
Emily Taylor, BBC Edit Producer; Animals Behaving Badly
I worked with Emma on the series Planet Earth 2. Emma was a very valued member of the team to successfully researched, arranged and directed a number of key shoots for the Islands and Mountains episodes. Emma was hard working, creative, robust and a good team player. She has a thorough knowledge of the television making process and is very good on location. Emma’s keen interest in diving and climbing also means she has excellent experience and qualifications to lead complicated remote shoots. I would recommend Emma to anyone thinking of employing her and would be happy to give a reference.
Tom Hugh-Jones, BBC Series Producer; Planet Earth II
Emma took on several of the sequences for ‘Islands’ looking after complex logistics for shoots in Madagascar, Komodo and the New Zealand Sub-Antarctic. This involved researching stories, setting up shoots to remote locations, writing risk assessments, dealing with complex permitting processes, liaising with fixers and scientists, and managing small teams on location.
Emma is savvy at directing / delivering a storyline and is also well-versed in technology. She’s happy to get ‘stuck in’ with filming – whether that be operating a MoVi/Ronin-style system, recording sound, or filming additional camera. She has experience in digital and short-form film and directed & shot behind the scenes material and scientist interviews that were really useful for the web.
Elizabeth White, BBC Producer; Planet Earth II: Islands
It was my absolute pleasure to work with Emma over the 4 years we were making Planet Earth 2. Emma proved herself to bean imaginative, resourceful, hard working and friendly presence during our filming and post production journey.
Emma field directed several of the sequences in the show and worked well to a brief and had a great imaginative flair for storytelling. She was tough in the face of really demanding remote field locations and all the camera crew reported how much she was a pleasure to work with. Emma also edit produced our making of segment which went on to be really well received by our viewers.
I would thoroughly recommend Emma to anyone, she would be a dedicated, experienced and positive addition to any film making team.
Justin Anderson, BBC Producer; Planet Earth II: Mountains
Emma is a wonderfully committed, creative and effective content producer and communicator. She is also one of the few people talented enough to cross the divide between conventional broadcast television and all things digital. Calm under pressure, she doesn’t get distracted and focuses on delivering results, and projects, to tight deadlines.
She uses her initiative, and has the rare talent of being able to work alone, or as a key member of a production team. But what really set Emma apart from many, is that she has an eye for how the creative and media industries are changing, and what impactful content will look like in the future. While she is at home shooting on location for blue-chip television, she has also acquired extensive experience in journalism, photography, video and programme production, and web publishing.
Crucially that means Emma is skilfully able to tell short-form, or non-linear stories, across the web and social media. And she has a track-record of making such content under the greatest of pressures, yet still delighting the largest of audiences – having applied her talents to supporting and growing the BBC’s science and natural history genres – which includes some of the corporation’s most globally renowned, best-loved and commercially successfully brands. To survive in an increasingly innovative, competitive and fragmented media landscape, it’s no exaggeration to say modern content producers need people like Emma.
Matt Walker, Award winning journalist – Editor BBC Earth & New Scientist
