A unique, decade-long mountain lion study uses a vast network of over 200 trail cameras scattered throughout Montana’s Sapphire Mountains to piece together the story of a female mountain lion named Willow and her kittens. The film weaves together footage of mountain lions and their complex interactions with each other. Witness an epic saga about life and death that contains never-before-captured events and behaviors at every turn.
Features
PRODUCTION CREDITS
PRODUCED BY
COLIN RUGGIERO
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
COLIN RUGGIERO
EDITING
COLIN RUGGIERO
JIM ISLER
FEATURING
JOSHUA LISBON
MAGGIE HIRSCHAUER
TYLER CARLIN
ADDITIONAL CINEMATOGRAPHY BY
JORDAN HOFFMASTER
EFFECTS AND MOTION GRAPHICS BY
ZACH JOHANESON
ORIGINAL SCORE BY
MATTHEW MARSOLEK
ADDITIONAL CAMERA TRAP FOOTAGE BY
JOSEPH PONTECORVO
HOUNDSMAN
VERNON SMITH
SCIENTIFIC ADVISORS
PHILIP RAMSEY
KRISTY PILGRIM
THIS FILM MADE EXTENSIVE USE OF THE MPG RANCH TRAIL CAM NETWORK COORDINATED BY
ALAN RAMSEY
CARLY BROOKS
ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTORS TO MPG VIDEO ARCHIVES
PHILIP RAMSEY
CHERIN SPENCER-BOWER
KYLIE PAUL
JONDA LORNES
MAGGIE HIRSCHAUER
TOR BERTIN
THAIN BERTIN
CRAIG JOURDONNAIS
JOSHUA LISBON
ORIGINAL EPISODE PRODUCTION FUNDING PROVIDED IN PART BY
The Hite Foundation
ORIGINAL SERIES PRODUCTION FUNDING PROVIDED IN PART BY
Arnhold Foundation
Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III
The Fairweather Foundation
Charles Rosenblum
Kathy Chiao and Ken Hao
Sarah and Sandra Lyu
The Lillian Goldman Charitable Trust
Dr. George Stanley and Sandra Caruso
Kate W. Cassidy Foundation
Filomen M. D’Agostino Foundation
Gregg Peters Monsees Foundation
Koo and Patricia Yuen
Seton J. Melvin
Sandra Atlas Bass
FOR NATURE
SERIES EDITOR
JANET HESS
SENIOR PRODUCER
LAURA METZGER LYNCH
SUPERVISING PRODUCER
JAYNE JUN
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
JAMES F. BURKE
LEGAL COUNSEL
BLANCHE ROBERTSON
DIGITAL LEAD
DANIELLE BROZA
DIGITAL PRODUCER
AMANDA SCHMIDT
SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR
KAREN HO
AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT
CHELSEY SAATKAMP
BUDGET CONTROLLER
JAYNE LISI
ONLINE EDITOR
STACEY DOUGLASS MOVERLEY
RE-RECORDING MIXER
JON BERMAN
SERIES PRODUCER
BILL MURPHY
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
FRED KAUFMAN
A PRODUCTION OF RHYTHM PRODUCTIONS, LLC AND THE WNET GROUP
THIS PROGRAM WAS PRODUCED BY THIRTEEN PRODUCTIONS LLC, WHICH IS SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ITS CONTENT.
© 2025 THIRTEEN PRODUCTIONS LLC AND RHYTHM PRODUCTIONS, LLC
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
FUNDING
Support for Nature—Willow: Diary of a Mountain Lion is provided in part by The Hite Foundation. Series funding for Nature is made possible in part by The Arnhold Family in memory of Henry and Clarisse Arnhold, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, The Fairweather Foundation, Charles Rosenblum, Kathy Chiao and Ken Hao, Sarah and Sandra Lyu in memory of Seung and Dorothy Lyu, Lillian Goldman Charitable Trust, Dr. George Stanley and Sandra Caruso, Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, Filomen M. D’Agostino Foundation, Gregg Peters Monsees Foundation, Koo and Patricia Yuen, Seton J. Melvin, Sandra Atlas Bass, and public television viewers.
TRANSCRIPT
- [Narrator] From the hills of Montana comes an extraordinary feat of filmmaking.
Over 10 years, 150 remote cameras recorded a tapestry of creatures.
The star of this story is a remarkable mountain lion, a dedicated mother raising six cubs on her own.
This is Willow.