Bomanbridge and FlareFlow link on lion docuseries

Vertical video platform FlareFlow has partnered with Sonia Fleck’s Singapore-based production and distribution outfit Bomanbridge Media on a natural history docuseries.

Mapogo: The Lion Throne (w/t) is being touted as the first premium factual series to be produced in a vertical video format and is set to debut in Q3.

The show, which is being co-produced by COL Group International’s FlareFlow and Bomanbridge, was filmed over several years at South Africa’s Sabi Sands Game Reserve. It chronicles the brutal rise and tragic fall of the Mapogo Lion coalition, regarded by many as the most famous and feared lion dynasties ever documented.

The series will be narrated by popular microdrama star Sam Myerson (Oops, I Married My Bestie’s Brother).

FlareFlow said the show would “combine the cliffhanger pacing and emotional intensity of vertical drama with the sweeping scale of premium natural history”.

Myerson added: “Narrating Mapogo is an incredible opportunity to show how the core elements of a great microdrama are entirely universal.

“The same things that keep fans hooked on microdramas, like intense drama, high stakes, and shifting loyalties, are exactly what make these lions so fascinating. We are bringing that same fast paced, gripping energy to a new documentary format of microdrama.”

FlareFlow claims to have more than 33 million registered users globally and has launched more than 5,200 series on its platform.

Sonia Fleck, chief exec of Bomanbridge, said: “The factual genre has always evolved alongside shifts in audience behavior and viewing technology.

“Following our continued expansion through international partnerships and catalogue acquisitions, we saw a clear opportunity to bring premium natural history storytelling into the vertical space, an area that remains largely untapped for documentary.

“As viewing habits become increasingly mobile native, we believe the next generation of factual storytelling must evolve alongside them.”

Timothy Oh, general manager of international business at COL Group, added: “This is one of wildlife’s most legendary true sagas, packed with all the betrayal, power, loss and suspense that vertical audiences connect with instinctively.”