Colossal Biosciences, the genetic engineering startup trying to bring back extinct species and protect endangered ones, has brought on James Reed as director for a multi-year documentary series. The episodes will depict Colossal's efforts to revive species such as the woolly mammoth and the dodo bird.

^{A view of a fully assembled large mammoth. (Photo by Ana Fernandez/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)}

Reed worked on the Oscar-winning Netflix documentary “My teacher Octopus“, a film that followed a filmmaker's year-long relationship with an octopus. In this new venture with Colossal, Reed and his producing partner Matt Houghton will have exclusive access to Colossal's efforts over the next several years and will they take viewers behind the scenes.

The documentaries will provide an inside look at Colossal's extinction projects and its innovative conservation technology aimed at protecting endangered species such as elephants and northern white rhinos. The series will also examine how Colossal is using AI to understand animal behavior and the potential impact of the reopening.

Reed, Houghton and Colossal will all work alongside Jillian Share for Teton Ridge Entertainment and executive producer Michael Dougherty on the project. Teton Ridge Entertainment will be financially returned the first stage of production, with the final aim of finding a distribution partner.

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It is unclear how much the documentaries will cost and when they will air at this time.

Colossal was formed in 2021 around the idea that bringing back extinct species can improve life today. The woolly mammoth, for example, can help fight climate change by limiting greenhouse gases released from the Arctic due to global warming. The mammoth's comeback will teach scientists more about gene editing, which could help with real-life improvements like preventing disease in humans. Colossal has raised 225 million dollars in total funds, bringing his rating to over 1 billion dollars.

In one 2021 interviews with Entrepreneurs, Colossal co-founder Ben Lamm stated that the company's goal was to have its first woolly mammoth calves within six years. of PLAN is to take skin cells from Asian elephants and put them into stem cells with frozen mammoth DNA to form an embryo. The embryo would then be placed in an artificial womb in a laboratory or carried to term by a surrogate mother.

By recreating the woolly mammoth, Lamm stated that Colossal would have a “de-extinction toolkit” that the company could also use to conserve critically endangered species.

One concern raised against the startup is that things could go wrong as it experiments with bringing animals back. When it comes to potential bad actors or negative consequences, Lamm said “as long as we're transparent, people can hold us accountable.”