KELLY BAKOS
DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER
& SCIENCE STORYTELLER
My work takes audiences where they'll never go themselves:
To the face of a calving glacier where only autonomous robots can go. Acoustically monitoring sperm whales a thousand feet underwater. Tracking gorillas through the jungles of Africa.
I translate hard science into stories people actually engage with — on screen, on walls, and on the page.
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Reaching international audiences through:
❖ Theatrical, public television, and festival viewers
❖ Zoo, aquarium, museum, and wayside exhibit visitors
❖ Book, magazine, and blog readers
❖ Website and interactive media users
...in the millions and counting.
WHAT I DO
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VIDEO & FILM
Wildlife & Conservation Documentary Video Production
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Documentary films and educational videos that entertain, inform and inspire action.
WRITING
Science Writing & Environmental Communications
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Complex science made accessible for diverse audiences and public relations
DESIGN
Conservation Outreach & Campaign Design
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Multimedia, print and digital materials that send persuasive conservation messages.
PHOTOGRAPHY & ILLUSTRATION
Nature Photography & Science Illustration
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Powerful images and original artwork that reveal impactful science and tell visual stories.
VIDEO & FILM
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REELS
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DOCUMENTARY SPECIALS
TERMINUS
3-Part Science Thriller Documentary Special
In Post-Production | Episode Runtimes: 60 minutes
Every coastal city in the world is planning its future on a number—a sea level projection. That number is wrong.
To find the right one, scientists are deploying a fleet of robotic vessels into a place no human can go—the submerged face of an actively calving Alaskan glacier—to measure ice melt in real time at the source. TERMINUS follows the scientists, engineers and robotics teams operating at the edge of what's possible in one of the world's most extreme and rapidly changing environments.
Where the ice ends, the answers begin.
(FauneVoyage Films)
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FEATURE FILMS
EXTENDED TRAILER FOR:
OCCAM'S OTTER
Feature Documentary Film | Runtime: 90 minutes
After being eradicated for their luxurious fur and then reintroduced many years later, sea otters are thriving again in Southeast Alaska's coastal waters. Their return is sparking an all-out war over who controls the ocean's bounty.
OCCAM'S OTTER plunges into the marine battleground to explore humankind's controversial relationship with these charming furbearers and the conflicts that are arising as politics, science and industry clash over the fate of these furry ocean pirates—and discover that there are no simple solutions when everyone's survival is on the line.
(FauneVoyage Films)
TRAILER FOR:
A HERD OF ORPHANS
Feature Documentary Film (2018) | Runtime: 86 minutes
When poachers kill adult elephants for their ivory, the calves that are left behind are orphaned, homeless, and unable to survive without the care of a herd. Their survival is dependent on the extraordinary people who dedicate their lives to protecting and raising them at an elephant orphanage tucked deep within the heart of Zambia. This endearing film is an inside look into their lives and the struggles they face as they grow up as A HERD OF ORPHANS.
Filmmaker Kelly Bakos captures the heartwarming, humorous and cheeky personalities of these orphans while interweaving stories about daily survival and coming of age within an unnatural setting—while threats still abound.
(FauneVoyage Films)
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SHORT FILMS
TRAILER FOR:
SEASWAP: Southeast Alaska Sperm Whale Avoidance Project
Short Documentary Film (2006) | Runtime: 37 minutes
Alaska fisherman Kendall Folkert works long hours on the water, but sperm whales are costing him his catch—and his livelihood. When the clever animals learn to steal black cod from his longline gear, researchers Aaron Thode (Scripps Institution of Oceanography) and Jan Straley (University of Alaska Southeast) join forces with fishermen and fisheries managers to decode the signals drawing whales to the fishing vessel Cobra. Watch as fishing and science collide in an unlikely collaboration to outwit an endangered species getting an easy meal.
(Alaska SeaLife Center & North Pacific Research Board)
2.2 million viewers across theatrical, public television, and festival screenings, and counting.
TRAILER FOR:
EPHEMERAL
(adj.) Lasting for a very short time
Short Documentary Film (2020) | Runtime: 30 minutes
Ephemeral art is nature-inspired art that lasts only for a short period of time. Pieces are constructed outdoors from natural materials that eventually return back to the environment as they decompose, transform, are blown away in the wind or swept into the sea.
EPHEMERAL documents a moment in time when artists in Southeast Alaska connect with nature while creating inspiring treasures in the rainforests and on the beaches.
(The Rainforest Festival)
1 million+ viewers across theatrical and public television broadcasts, and counting.
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TELEVISION SERIES
Tongass•ology
Television Documentary Series (2026)
In Post-Production | Episode Runtimes: 27:24 minutes
About the Series
Tongass•ology explores the fascinating world of science in Southeast Alaska's vast Tongass National Forest region. Each episode follows researchers as they use everything from high-tech gadgets to surprisingly simple tools to unlock the secrets of the amazing biodiversity that calls this landscape home.
EPISODE SYNOPSES
(For First 5 Episodes):
Episode 1: Life Between the Tides
Marine biologist Kellii Wood (Alaska Department of Fish & Game) demonstrates scientific sampling techniques to reveal how intertidal sea creatures master the ultimate survival challenge—thriving in a world that floods and drains like a giant bathtub every day.
Episode 2: The Buzz on Alaska's Pollinators
US Forest Service biologist Eric Castro uses simple Dixie cups and nets to track down Alaska's charismatic pollinators, from bumbling "flying pandas" to industrious flies that keep the whole ecosystem blooming.
Episode 3: High-Tech Whale Watching
Marine scientist Dr. Andy Szabo (Alaska Whale Foundation) uses drones and cutting-edge technology to conduct medical checkups on humpback whales and uncover the surprising truth about their health after being removed from the endangered species list.
Episode 4: Cold-Blooded DNA Detective
Biologist Eric Castro (US Forest Service) becomes a genetic sleuth, using environmental DNA from pond water to hunt for invisible pathogens that could threaten Alaska's secretive frogs, newts, and surprisingly toxic toads.
Episode 5: Underwater Census Takers
Marine biologist Kellii Wood (Alaska Department of Fish & Game) leads an underwater robot survey to count rockfish and stumbles upon nature's ultimate reality show—complete with surprise attacks and dramatic escapes on the seafloor.
All episodes are reviewed by expert panels for scientific accuracy and showcase positive research with real-world impact for local communities.
(FauneVoyage Films)
AWARDS & ACHIEVEMENTS
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VISUAL STORYTELLING
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Strategizing and creating innovative content and campaigns for environmental science and wildlife conservation causes.
I blend my skills in design, illustration, writing, video and photography to develop advocacy campaigns and outreach for nonprofit organizations, native tribes and government agencies. I specialize in content development, project management, strategic planning and brand development.
GET IN TOUCH
PARTNERSHIPS
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I've collaborated with scientists, nonprofit organizations, government agencies, and conservation causes dedicated to making real-world change. Here are few:
All works protected under copyright.
All rights reserved.
This is a small window into what I do—more exist under NDA that I can’t show here.
Reach out to see more!