"Wild Babies," a documentary series directed by Brazilian filmmaker Filipe DeAndrade and partially shot in Costa Rica, received an Emmy for Outstanding Travel, Adventure, and Nature Program.

The winners of the 50th Annual Daytime Emmy® Creative Arts & Lifestyle categories were announced by the U.S. National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS). The event was broadcast live on Friday from the Westin Bonaventure Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, California.

The Netflix documentary series "Wild Babies" illustrates how baby animals such as monkeys, lion cubs, seal pups, penguin chicks, and even sea turtle hatchlings must all learn to thrive on this planet.

Narrated by Academy Award nominee Helena Bonham Carter, the documentary shows the epic adventures of 16 wild babies, filmed across the globe. They are born into various circumstances and must prepare to navigate the years ahead.

In eight 30-minute episodes filmed in locations like South Africa, Costa Rica and South Carolina, the film shows these baby animals after birth as they grow, explore, and interact. "Since cliff-hangers are through lines in the series, you'll be desperate to learn what these adorable creatures get into next," Netflix said in its series intro.

 

Chapter 4 presents the life of "Chico", a newborn Capuchin monkey (Cebus imitator) born in Guanacaste who must learn to fight and fit in with his tough-loving family.

"A 1-week-old Capuchin monkey covered in black-and-white fur and sporting colossal doe eyes, Chico is the most precious little thing," said Netflix in its statement. "He spends his first weeks pampered by his mother in the Costa Rican forests, getting his fur cleaned and clinging to her back."

However, by his third month, Chico will have to learn to venture out on his own even though his petite size doesn’t give him much of a leg up in his family.

The series beat other nominees in the same category such as "Down to Earth With Zac Efron," "Guy's All-American Road Trip," "The Hidden Lives of Pets," "Island of the Sea Wolves" and "Reel Destinations."

Cleveland, U.S.-raised filmmaker Filipe DeAndrade graduated from the University of Florida and started a production house with his best friend called Comfort Theory.

In 2015, Filipe won National Geographic's Wild to Inspire short competition at the Sun Valley Film Festival and is a 10-time Emmy Award Winner as a producer and filmmaker.

As a National Geographic Explorer, he travels the world documenting natural history, wildlife stories, and human-animal conflicts.

His cinematography career has also set him on a landmark series path with Disney and Netflix along with other major networks.

 

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