Mark Anstice

Mark Anstice

Mark Anstice (born May 17, 1967 in the Angus Glens area of Scotland) is a Scottish explorer, adventurous documentary reality television film maker and writer. He is best known for appearing in the Travel Channel's series Mark & Olly: Living with the Tribes with Oliver Steeds.

Contents

Army career

After school, Anstice travelled extensively throughout Australia and Asia. In London he joined the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards of the British Army. Anstice spent six years in the guards with operational commitments in the Middle East, Central America and Bosnia, leaving the service in 1995 as a Captain.[1]

Television career

In 2002, Mark travelled along with Bruce Parry for 77 days to climb the little know mountain of Gunung Mandala, in the Irian Jaya region of New Guinea. During the expedition, the team had first contact with some members of the Korowai tribe. In the course of the expedition, the adventure documentary, Extreme Lives: Cannibals and Crampons.[2] was co-directed and written along with Bruce Parry. The film won both the Banff Mountain Film Festival [3] and Kendal Mountain Film Festival.

Mark subsequently wrote the book First Contact, published by Eye Books.,[4] which was published in 2004. chronicling the expedition to Mount Mandela.

In 2006, Mark took part in the recreation of the Terra Nova Expedition of Robert Falcon Scott and the Amundsen's South Pole expedition of Roald Amundsen as part of the BBC Blizzard: Race to the Pole [5] documentary. The documentary reconstructed the 2500 km expedition using the same equipment, food and clothing as the original two teams, placing the setting in Greenland as dogs were no longer allowed in Antarctica.

In 2011 Anstice and Steeds were accused of faking scenes in their series 'Mark & Olly: Living with the Machigenga'. They were also accused of maliciously mistranslating the tribespeople to portray them as 'sex obsessed, mean savages.[6]'

The Director of Survival International, Stephen Cory, said of the series: "One stereotype followed another, with the [tribe] variously portrayed as callous, perverted, cruel, and savage. TV is now getting away with portrayals which wouldn't be out of place in the Victorian era." The allegations were highlighted by Dr Glenn Shepard, an anthropologist and Ron Snell, who grew up with the tribe. The experts, both fluent in the Machigenga language have decades long links to the tribe. The BBC, which rebroadcast the series, said it was seeking answers to the allegations from distributors Freemantle Media.

Television filmography

  • Extreme Lives: Cannibals and Crampons (2002)
  • Blizzard: Race To The Pole (2006)
  • Mark & Olly: Living with the Tribes (2007)
  • Worlds Lost Tribes: The New Adventures of Mark and Olly (2008–2009)

Personal life

Anstice is married to Ayelen, who is Argentinian.

References

  1. ^ "Interview With Mark Anastice". World's Lost Tribes. Discovery Channel. http://ginger.tv/products/tv/95530-cannibals-and-crampons. Retrieved July 27, 2010. 
  2. ^ "Extreme Lives:Cannibals and Crampons". Cannibals and Crampons. Ginger Productions. http://www.yourdiscovery.com/worldslosttribes/meetmark/index.shtml?cc=US. Retrieved July 27, 2010. 
  3. ^ "Extreme Lives:Cannibals and Crampons". Cannibals and Crampons. Banff Mountain Film Festival. http://www.banffcentre.ca/mountainculture/media/2002/filmwinners.htm. Retrieved July 27, 2010. 
  4. ^ "Amazon". First Contact. Eye Books. http://www.amazon.co.uk/First-Contact-Mark-Anstice/dp/1903070260. Retrieved July 27, 2010. 
  5. ^ "Race To The Pole". Blizzard: Race to the Pole. BBC. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0887223/. Retrieved July 27, 2010. 
  6. ^ The Guardian: 'TV series about Amazonian tribe accused of faking scenes' 02/08/11


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