HHMI TANGLED BANK STUDIOS’ TURTLE WALKER IS NOMINATED FOR A 2026 GRIERSON AWARD
CHEVY CHASE, Md., September 15, 2026 – HHMI Tangled Bank Studios, Emaho Films, Tiger Baby, and Ceres Productions are honored to announce that their latest documentary, TURTLE WALKER, has been nominated for a 2026 Grierson Award for Best Science and Natural History Documentary.
Presented annually by the Grierson Trust, the Grierson Awards are widely regarded as the top honor in British documentary filmmaking, recognizing films that demonstrate quality, integrity, creativity, originality and overall excellence.
TURTLE WALKER, which premiered in 2024, recounts the epic journey of Satish Bhaskar, affectionately known as “Mr. Seaturtle,” who traveled along the Indian coastline with a mission to unravel the mysteries surrounding the Indian Ocean’s elusive sea turtles. Through his solitary expedition over decades, Satish discovered thousands of nesting sites of these enigmatic creatures. With each discovery he added new data upon which researchers and scientists could build to learn about and protect these under-studied populations.
The Grierson Award nomination adds to a growing list of honors for the film, including the Grand Teton Award at the 2024 Jackson Wild Media Awards, Best Feature and Best Production Design at the DOCUTAH International Film Festival, a Silver Anthem Award for Sustainability, Environment & Climate, and a 2025 Silbersaltz Science Media Award for Best Nature Program.
"We are thrilled to see TURTLE WALKER recognized by the Grierson Trust," said Jared Lipworth, Head of HHMI Tangled Bank Studios. "This film is a testament to Satish Bhaskar's remarkable legacy and we couldn't be more proud to see his story reach broad audiences."
TURTLE WALKER is written and directed by Taira Malaney. Produced by Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, Angad Dev Singh, Vikram Malaney and Taira Malaney. Krish Makhija is the associate director and director of photography. The film is co-written and edited by Sam Rogers, and executive produced by Isabelle Couture, James Reed, Jared Lipworth, Sean B. Carroll, and Nikita Mamik.
The Grierson Award ceremony will take place on Tuesday, November 10.
For more information on the film, please visit https://turtlewalker.com/
ABOUT HHMI TANGLED BANK STUDIOS
HHMI Tangled Bank Studios is a mission-driven production company that seeks to shine a light on some of the most significant scientific challenges and breakthroughs of our time. Recent films include Battle to Breathe, The Birds, Giving Back Breath, SciShow Field Trips, The Calling, Turtle Walker, Ending HIV in America, Blue Carbon, Every Little Thing, Wild Hope, Wilding, Blue Whales: Return of the Giants, and Oscar-nominated All That Breathes, the only film to win best documentary at both the Sundance and Cannes film festivals. Other notable films include Emmy Award-winners Hunt for the Oldest DNA, The Serengeti Rules and The Farthest – Voyager In Space; Emmy-nominated My Garden of a Thousand Bees, Battle to Beat Malaria, and Nature’s Fear Factor; and Peabody Award winner Inventing Tomorrow. To extend the reach and impact of each film, the studio undertakes educational and public outreach efforts in partnership with purpose-focused organizations. For more information, please visit WWW.TANGLEDBANKSTUDIOS.ORG.
ABOUT TIGER BABY
Tiger Baby, a production house founded by Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti, aims at telling stories that shape our narratives and address our social context.
Zoya’s work as a writer, director and producer has earned her an Emmy nomination, a NETPAC Award for Best Asian Film, a world premiere at both Festival de Cannes and Berlinale, and India’s official entry to the Oscars. Zoya’s most recent directorial, The Archies is the first even feature film of the globally revered comics. Known for her singular voice in Indian cinema, Reem has garnered acclaim for her celebrated directorials. Her project Dahaad, made history as the first ever Indian web series to premiere at Berlin International Film festival in 2023, where it was nominated for Berlinale Series Award. Reema’s most recent directorial, Superboys of Malegaon premiered at TIFF in September, receiving an overwhelming response from audiences.
ABOUT EMAHO FILMS
Emaho Films is an impact-driven media and production company founded in 2016 by writer and director Taira Malaney. The company’s vision is to create cinematic nonfiction films that share stories of people, places, and brands in a fascinating way. Emaho is a Sanskrit expression of wonder and amazement, Their films tap into human’s natural sense of curiosity. They want their audiences to experience that moment of awe when discovering something new. At the heart of their films is a strong character driven storytelling. Emaho has produced several award-winning short films, including A Living Legacy (2017) and The Call of Pashmina (2018).