Off the Fence Presells Silverback

Factual content specialist Off the Fence (OTF) has made a raft of presales for its latest feature-length documentary, Silverback.

Deals for the 90-minute film, set to debut on the BBC and France Télévisions on January 7 and 8, respectively, have been closed with U.S. streamer Xumo and three European public broadcasters: Austria’s ORF, Sweden’s UR and Finland’s Yle.

The doc follows Congo-born wildlife cameraman Vianet Djenguet as he joins the effort to protect his country’s critically endangered eastern lowland gorillas, primarily focusing on the habituation of Mpungwe, an alpha-male gorilla.

Silverback is produced by OTF Studios in association with the BBC, France Télévisions, Featuristic Films and The WNET Group.

Andrew Zikking, managing director of OTF Studios, said: “Silverback started as a film about trying to save a species from extinction, but the director’s obs-doc approach allowed it to evolve into many unexpected directions, including the impact of poverty, ideas around identity, family and masculinity. However, it is first and foremost a natural-history film documenting the dangerous and at times distressing habituation of Mpungwe and his family.”

Stefanie Fischer, OTF’s managing director of distribution, added: “We are proud to be recognized for our work in the natural history community at Jackson, winning the Great Teton, and these pre-premiere sales indicate that Silverback will certainly win buyers and audiences around the world—and, in the process, help to raise awareness of the plight of these magnificent, critically endangered creatures.”