How Planet Earth II got its best shots — from baby iguanas' first steps to mating rituals of Komodo dragons

When BBC Earth released a teaser clip for its new series Planet Earth II in November, the video immediately went viral.

Simply titled "Iguana vs. Snakes," the clip shows a hatchling marine iguana on a rocky shore of the Galapagos Isalnds. The iguana encounters a snake, and as it tries to run from the reptile, suddenly dozens of snakes emerge from the rocks. Snakes are everywhere, bringing to life every ophiophobic's worst nightmare.  Will the iguana make it to safety? Will it survive? To say the clip was gripping would be an understatement. 

As filmmakers … you're not meant to interfere.  But that doesn't mean you don't get touched by it.- Elizabeth White, BBC Earth Director and Producer

And thus the eager anticipation grew for the second installment in the Planet Earth series.

Coming a decade after the original 11-episode series, Planet Earth II takes on a whole new collection of species and habitats over six episodes.

Elizabeth White is the producer and director of the first episode entitled "Islands," which premieres Saturday, February 18th on BBC Earth.

White spent more than 18 months preparing to film the episode, which took her to the Galapagos Islands, the Caribbean, Indonesia, and Antarctica among other locations. She joined host Brent Bambury in the Day 6 studio to take us behind the scenes of some of the most dramatic encounters she was able to capture.

Getting started: Preparation is key

The initial step of choosing a location and story to tell is difficult, says White.

"The first six months of production really is talking to scientists, watching other films that have been made about islands, and trying to distill that into the kind of the variety," explains White. "You know, you want to get a mix in the show of mammals versus birds, and covering all the issues."

The animals don't read scripts and they don't turn up on time.- Elizabeth White, BBC Earth Director and Producer

This helps ensure the building blocks of the story are established ahead of time – something that's even more important with non-human subjects.

"Obviously you had to kind of ad lib when you're there, because you have no guarantee. The animals don't read scripts and they don't turn up on time," jokes White.

She also acknowledges that the budget is always in the back of her mind.

"There's always complications of choosing shoots and knowing that if you do something that's very expensive, the next thing's got to be more cheap."

Escaping danger

Risky encounters with the stars of her films isn't foreign to White. Take the dramatic 'Iguana vs. Snakes' chase, which White refers to as a "horror show" that, in the final edit, is a two-minute sequence following the iguana as it tries to get back to its colony on its own.

"In the story we're telling it from the iguana's perspective, so yes, we try to put you into that hatchling's world," says White.

In this case, that world includes a "Medusa's head of several snakes" emerging from the nearby rocks, but it's clear they aren't working together.

While viewers might be horrified by the snakes, White has a different view.

"These things are not evil monsters. And you know, they're just wanting to get a meal and the island is a desolate, desolate place for them," she says.

Chance encounters with other, more deadly animals in Indonesia meant the crew had to think on their feet and rely on local officials more.

After filming a mating competition between two giant male Komodo dragons, the crew headed back to the ranger facility where they were staying. A member of the team opened the door of the washroom and found a large dragon sitting in front of the toilet.

The team, along with rangers and locals in the area, tempted the dragon with raw and smelly meat. It eventually worked, but the dragon didn't leave without a thank you.

"The dragon left a calling card of disgust as he walked towards the door. He stopped and kind of left a large kind of dragon dropping all across the middle of this room," recalls White, laughing.

Maintaining professionalism

The first episode also sees White and crew travel to Zavodovski Island, which is home to one of the world's largest penguin colonies.

Located in the Antarctic, this island is largely uninhabited by humans.

"I think about 250 people have been into space, and it's probably quite a lot less than that that have actually walked on Zavodovski. David Attenborough happens to be one of those, he went by helicopter," says White.

After hearing about the island several years ago, White says she was drawn to it for its "natural character." With a smoking volcano, a massive rough sea and the large density of penguins, she says it was a story she just had to tell.

But White admits that maintaining independence from the subjects was difficult.

"As filmmakers … you're not meant to interfere. But also the places we work, often the science regulation is also that you mustn't interfere," she explains. "And all of us are biologists by background, so you have that realistic notion that this is the natural world, there's nothing you can do, it's nature, but that doesn't mean you don't get touched by it."

Seeing the gruelling journey the chinstrap penguins had to make to get to the beach on Zavodovski made White emotional.

"The beach in the afternoon was just a scene of death and destruction. It was absolute carnage. It's kind of heartbreaking. I mean they're trying so hard to get at the beach with broken legs. They're bleeding and [it's] very, you know, sobering really," she says in the episode.

"As much as I would have loved to bundle up all the little penguin chicks and kind of keep them warm in my tent, you just – you can't do that."

What's next?

White says she's not sure what's on the radar for her now.

"There are so many great stories out there. And doing a series like this, you come up with more and more stories," she says.

Recalling the last episode called Cities, which involved filming right here in Toronto, White says capturing a diversity of issues and locations is inspiring.

 "I think you look at material like that and it reminds you that there's so many place still to go, and there's still stories to tell."