The Team
We, Phillip Hattingh and Klaus Sparwasser, the core team of Southern Cross Films, are a two passionate filmmakers from South Africa and Germany. Together we look back upon more than half a century of experience in producing high end nature documentaries.
THIS IS WHAT WE LIVE FOR.
Nature is under severe threat nowadays. We are participating in the 6th extinction, a man made cataclysmic wave threatening all life on the planet including ourselves.
Over the last few years we've focussed on mankind’s impact on wildlife and ecosystems, particularly in Africa and Asia, by poaching, habitat destruction and wildlife trafficking.
In 2017 Phil and Klaus founded Southern Cross Films as a joint venture to produce critical nature /eco documentaries with an investigative approach, to spread some inconvenient truths about conservation and the true status of biodiversity into the public.
Phillip Hattingh
A South African living amidst the chaos of wildlife conservation and illicit wildlife trafficking and quickly diminishing wildlife in Africa. Started producing documentary films in the mid 80’s after a career in feature film and television drama series failed to inspire me any longer.
As audiences migrated from natural history documentaries I looked for a hook to lure viewers back to the genre. The emergence of reality type programming in the early 2000’s gave me a chance to explore this when I co directed 13 part series for Animal Planet called ESPU - the Endangered Species Protection Unit - a wildlife cop reality show.
I’ve produced several feature length documentaries and series on wildlife crime spending a lot of time in South East Asia filming the drivers of the illicit trade. Unless we can expose audiences to the realities of conserving biodiversity, as distasteful as some of the choices are that have to be made, we will lose the war against environmental terrorism and pseudo conservation policies aimed at enriching individuals.
Klaus Sparwasser
A biologist and documentary filmmaker from Germany who has been travelling all continents with his camera in his backpack for more than 15 years. On the trace of archaic landscapes, exotic wildlife and fragile habitats - and the ecological consequences of our actions.
On my travels I´ve not only watched and documented the beauty of our planet, but also the increasing degradation of nature wherever there is a conflict of interests between conservation and the well-being of man. Our insatiable hunger for natural resources, living space and profit is diminishing already dwindling wilderness areas around the globe and the species within. Even worse, threatened species have become profitable commodities themselves.
Poaching, smuggling and black markets are getting completely out of control. Most countries in Africa and Asia with just the highest rate of biodiversity are ruled by corruption, non-existing law enforcement, fraudulence and criminal networks, including officials up to government members.
NGOs and institutions like CITES constantly fail in their half hearted efforts to stop the decline of biodiversity. Flooded with information, a misguided public is no longer able to distinguish facts from fiction.
What keeps me going: The hope, that we as independent filmmakers are able to make a difference. To outrage the public. To conquer politics. To touch people's hearts. It is our task as responsible human beings.
Kyle Hattingh
Cameraman and production assistant on The Elephant Conspiracy documentary. He will be helping hands throughout the project and will be prepared for everything which comes our way.
Stuart Smith
Freelance editor from South Africa with international experience, awarded productions and a passion for documentaries. Likes working in close collaboration with directors, editing unscripted doccies, building the shows narrative in the editing room, which is - except for the missing script - provided.
Tilman von Hein
As a camera man, freelance editor and AFX artist he has been part of many former productions from trailers to image films and feature length movies. He's always ready to adapt his editing to the changing course of documentaries.
Iris Sparwasser
As a landscape architect with focus on ecology and equipped with a pretty sensitive hearing she´s been involved in several former productions and cares for the proper sound in the field and at mixing.