Hamburg, 14 January 2025 - Under the DOCLIGHTS umbrella, the two shareholders STUDIO HAMBURG PRODUCTION GROUP and ZDF Studios are restructuring their documentary business and establishing a creative documentary hub in Hamburg with effect from 1 January 2025. In future, the business of ECO MEDIA and doc.station will be structurally bundled under DOCLIGHTS. The programme portfolio of the newly formed docu-centre includes political documentaries, factual entertainment, nature films and international co-productions. Together, the companies aim to add further documentary colours to the programme spectrum.
"A dream come true," says Michael Lehmann, CEO of the STUDIO HAMBURG PRODUCTION GROUP. "Documentaries have the greatest social relevance and are highly accepted, especially in these uncertain times. We benefit from the expertise already available and promote in-house collaboration between different documentary disciplines. The information sector will become even more important in the future and therefore offers opportunities for growth. The combination of DOCLIGHTS with doc.station and ECO MEDIA is therefore a strategically logical step."
Dr Markus Schäfer, CEO of ZDF Studios, adds: "We are delighted to be opening a new chapter in our long-standing and successful partnership with the Studio Hamburg Production Group by bundling our documentary activities in Hamburg. We are thus creating creative synergies in a challenging market environment. The merger of the companies also enables cost advantages through optimised use of resources."
The doc.station was founded in 1999 and produces innovative and award-winning reports, documentaries and docu-dramas for ARD, ZDF, arte, SKY, National Geographic, SRF, ORF, NDR, WDR, MDR, BR, SWR and 3sat. The company, headed by Jasmin Gravenhorst, specialises in international science history and current affairs productions for linear television and streaming platforms.Â
The ECO MEDIA was founded by Stefan Lamby in Hamburg in 1997. Dr Thomas Schuhbauer and Jan Holtz took over as managing directors in 2020. The documentaries on politics, contemporary history, society, business, culture and science inform and entertain on linear television, on streaming platforms and in social networks at the highest level. The productions have been honoured with prestigious awards such as the German Television Award and the Blue Panther.
The DOCLIGHTS is Germany's leading nature film producer with productions in prime time on ARD, NDR and all other ARD state broadcasters, in cinemas and on streaming platforms. Under the leadership of Jörn Röver, the nature film division cooperates with all major international broadcasters and producers and has received more than 600 national and international awards since 2010. The factual entertainment division of DOCLIGHTS under the management of Michaela Hummel is equally strong. This is where award-winning factual entertainment formats, documentaries, reports and docu-series, including those that have won the German Television Award, are produced, primarily for media libraries and digital channels. Topics include science, history, current affairs and sport. These include the top-rated ARD documentaries with Ingo Zamperoni, the ZDF science format TERRA XPLORE with Leon Windscheid and Jasmina Neudecker, the ZDF Terra X History 3-parter ROADTRIP 1945 with the latest digital technology and the NDR docusoap SEELÖWE & CO. - IS AN ANIMAL FAVOURITE.
