TROPIC FEVER
FORAY AT THE ORINOCO
ALEXANDER VON HUMBOLDT‘S ADVENTURES
In 1799, the young Berlin aristocrat Alexander von Humboldt set out on a journey into unknown territory. Accompanied by his French friend and companion Aimé Bonpland, he travelled through the almost entirely unexplored rainforest regions of South America. Humboldt’s goal: to prove the existence of a hidden connection between the continent’s two great river systems — the Amazon and the Orinoco.
Humboldt, Bonpland and their crew fought their way through the green hell of the Amazon basin. For a time, the two young Europeans collected more data than any expedition before them — cataloguing new species, landscapes and phenomena at a breathtaking rate. They pushed into entirely uncharted territory, helped in no small part by Humboldt’s remarkable ability to build trust with the indigenous peoples they encountered. But then malaria struck — hitting Bonpland harder than any other member of the crew.
Alexander von Humboldt is revered to this day as a founding father of natural science. Across the globe, mountain ranges, ocean currents, species and archipelagos bear his name. In Latin America in particular, he has attained something close to cult status. He is widely regarded as the world’s first ecologist — the first person to think in truly ecological terms. Two hundred years ago, Humboldt was already writing about climate change and the systematic interdependence of the natural world.
Humboldt, Bonpland and their crew fought their way through the green hell of the Amazon basin. For a time, the two young Europeans collected more data than any expedition before them — cataloguing new species, landscapes and phenomena at a breathtaking rate. They pushed into entirely uncharted territory, helped in no small part by Humboldt’s remarkable ability to build trust with the indigenous peoples they encountered. But then malaria struck — hitting Bonpland harder than any other member of the crew.
Alexander von Humboldt is revered to this day as a founding father of natural science. Across the globe, mountain ranges, ocean currents, species and archipelagos bear his name. In Latin America in particular, he has attained something close to cult status. He is widely regarded as the world’s first ecologist — the first person to think in truly ecological terms. Two hundred years ago, Humboldt was already writing about climate change and the systematic interdependence of the natural world.
Facts
Shot on original locations in Manaus (Brazil), Presidente Figureido (Brazil), Rio Negro (Brazil), Berlin, Munich.
First aired 16th September 2007, 7:30pm on ZDF
Credits
Written, directed and produced by: Petra Höfer and Freddie Röckenhaus
Cast: Benjamin Völz (Alexander von Humboldt), Luiz Eduardo Correa ( Aimee Bonpland), Marcelo Maia (Padre Zea), Téofilo Eliseo Mena (de Soto)
Director of Photography: Johannes Imdahl
Video Editor: Jörg Wegner
Producer: Friederike Schmidt-Vogt, Ivano Cordeiro, Francesca D’Amicis
Line Producer: Svenja Mandel
Field producer in Brazil: Claus Ruegner, Leo Wery
Commissioning Editors: Friederike Haedecke (ZDF)
A colourFIELD production commissioned by ZDF
