A CHESHIRE dad-of-two has worked alongside two Hollywood legends as part of the team behind the Netflix's new pre-historic documentary.
Dan Tapster, of Wilmslow, works as TV producer for Bristol-based Silverback Films which has collaborated with Steven Spielberg's Amblin Documentaries to create hit show, The Dinosaurs.
Narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Morgan Freeman, the four-part series follows the rise and fall of the dinosaurs across more than 150 million years.
With responsibility for the creative vision, health and safety, and managing the budget, Dan worked as the showrunner on the documentary, which has been his favourite project to date.
He said: “What we’ve come up with is the rise and fall of the dinosaurs - from their beginnings as underdogs in the Triassic through this amazing adventure. They went on of highs and lows.
"There are a lot of other dinosaur shows out there, so we wanted to try and tell that whole story.
“Where did the dinosaurs come from? What did they do to succeed when others didn’t? How did they overcome a changing planet and what exactly happened on that crazy day when they went extinct?”
Dan explained palaeontologists had a big role in the project as well, and were there to keep the team honest and accurate throughout the production, which lasted three years.
“We worked with about 60 scientific consultants around the world," he added. "We also employed two permanently full-time on the team, they were the guys that kept us honest really because we always wanted to make sure that we were scientifically accurate.
“A really good example of that is the Spinosaurus, which is actually the biggest predatory animal that has ever existed on our planet - bigger than the T-Rex - but how it behaved is really controversial."
While working on the show Dan travelled over to the US for the narration with Freeman, who he has worked with before on several other projects.
Dan said: "Morgan Freeman is lovely.
"We worked with him this time across a week to do the voiceover and that was done in a place called Mobile, in Alabama, which is where he lives."
And while only rarely getting a chance to meet Spielberg, Dan explained he often received feedback from the legendary director who 'was there when he was needed and was super supportive'.
The Dinosaurs became available on Netflix from March 6, and is already proving popular.
Dan added: “My family was excited about it. I have two boys in their late teens now, but when I started, because it took three years to make, they were 14 and 16.
"Everyone loves dinosaurs, it seems to be a universal thing."
A TV producer since the late 1990s, Dan has also worked on other shows such as MythBusters and Life on Our Planet, while he also spent around 10 years with the BBC Studios Natural History Unit.
But, as well as The Dinosaurs, MythBusters remains one of Dan's favourite projects to work on.
He added: "It’s a show that scientifically tested whether myths and legends were true or false.
"I will always have a soft spot for MythBusters because it was an absolute wild ride of a show that included all sorts of weird opportunities.
"One time we were working with the team on a Breaking Bad special, and another we were getting invited by Barack Obama to the White House.
"I had all sorts of crazy adventures.”
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