Graphic landscapes, buildings, industrial halls, and traffic arteries – these are modern structures that are increasingly shaping not only urban areas but also the landscapes of Central Europe. For many wild animals, this has long been a daily reality, forcing them to adapt to the extreme. However, there are also supportive measures, also human-made, specifically by those involved in nature conservation, which today must be just as modern.

There is plenty of material for an exciting ORF documentary titled *"Wildness 2.0 – Adapting to a new world."*  
The film is about a wilderness that, in the true sense, is no longer wilderness, but rather remnants of transformed fragments intended to provide habitat for rare species.

Who could tell us more compellingly about these changes than the animals themselves? Among them, the bearded vulture, a species that was eradicated from the Alpine region for over a hundred years and has now returned thanks to extensive reintroduction projects.

During this exact period, humans began to reshape the earth's surface on a large scale according to their needs and desires. Through the eyes of this returning species, we see a new world that no longer resembles the old one, encountering many other animals that tell us about their survival and adaptation to this new reality.

Director and cameraman Patrick Centurioni took on this theme: *"Further interventions in the future could shape our landscapes even more distinctly and worsen the situation for many animal species. It depends heavily on the path we choose now."*

Unlike many "urban wildlife" documentaries, our focus is not on the city but on rural habitats. We explore highly transformed landscapes that appear graphic and abstract – a possible preview of a future we can still shape positively.

Various projects show that modern nature conservation can succeed in a modern world. Effective management is crucial to optimally integrate ecologically valuable areas and near-natural spaces into human-dominated environments. Examples include compensation areas along railways, highways, as well as wind and solar parks that can create valuable replacement habitats.

Corridors connect these ecological islands to ensure the unhindered movement of individuals. Abandoned industrial sites, like the basins of a sugar factory in eastern Austria, have been transformed into source habitats for rare species – replacement habitats that have been surprisingly well accepted.

Conservationists devote themselves tirelessly to protecting many animal species. Thanks to their efforts, white-tailed eagles and imperial eagles now soar once again over eastern Austria. The great bustard, Europe’s heaviest flying bird, was on the brink of extinction, but burying power lines has written a success story in species conservation.

It is clear that in the 21st century, everything is truly in our hands. We must be aware of this responsibility.

The film aims to provoke thought. The consciously chosen perspective of the animals allows us to better empathize with them and understand their daily lives and challenges.

*“The most exciting and challenging aspect for me was highlighting themes that vividly describe animal behavior, illustrating their adaptation to this new world.”*

A particularly fascinating example is the red-footed falcon. It was incredibly interesting to observe the strategies it employs to overcome shortages in its main food source, large insects. For the first time, we see slow-motion footage of red-footed falcons hunting large insects and seeking alternatives when food is scarce. Filming this fulfilled a long-held wish of mine.

There are often surprises in how adaptable nature can be when the necessary conditions are met. For instance, a small, forgotten fallow area between a traffic network and a shopping center becomes an unexpected refuge for numerous partridges. Patrick Centurioni remarks: *“One is often amazed at how little animals need – it often takes just a patch of unused land, an oasis in between, where wildlife can reproduce undisturbed.”*

We see corridors that consciously guide animals; green bridges that ensure safe passage and genetic diversity exchange; and concepts for the preservation and revitalization of valuable habitats.

Patrick Centurioni and his team spent over 90 days filming in various locations in Austria, Germany, Italy, and Romania to bring the fascinating story of *"Wildness 2.0"* to life.