About the Series
The Arborist: Innovators and Influencers is a seven-part documentary series exploring how
modern arboriculture came to be. Filmed across the UK, Europe and North America, the series
brings together climbers, engineers, manufacturers, educators and industry pioneers whose
ideas have shaped the way arborists work today.
From the development of climbing systems and chainsaws to rigging, competition, heavy
machinery and the rise of social media, each episode reveals the human stories behind the
equipment and techniques now taken for granted. This is not simply a history of tools. It is a
story of risk, invention, collaboration and the constant drive to make tree work safer, more
efficient and more informed.
Together, the seven episodes form a living archive of an industry that continues to evolve -
while reminding us that every innovation began with someone asking whether there was a
better way.

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THE ARBORIST: INNOVATORS AND INFLUENCERS

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Episode 1 - The Climber and the Kit
Every arborist begins with the same challenge: how to move safely and efficiently through a
living structure that never presents the same problem twice.
The opening episode explores the physical and mental demands of climbing and the evolution
of the systems that made modern tree work possible. From traditional rope-and-hitch
techniques to the first purpose-built mechanical devices, the episode follows the shift from
improvised solutions to equipment designed specifically for arborists.
Featuring the development of the ART LockJack, Petzl's move into arborist equipment, the
creation of the ZigZag and Kevin Bingham's groundbreaking Rope Wrench and Rope Runner,
the film reveals the persistence, testing and occasional failure behind products now used
around the world.
More than a history of climbing equipment, this episode is about trust: trust in the rope, trust
in the device and, ultimately, trust in the judgement of the person using it.

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Episode 2 - Standards, Saws and the Changing Shape of
Tree Work
Arboriculture never stands still. New rules, new equipment and new expectations constantly
challenge the way climbers work.
Episode two examines how legislation, training and professional guidance have reshaped the
industry, using the introduction of two-line working as a case study in change. Contributors
discuss the resistance, confusion and practical difficulty that followed, but also the
opportunity it created to question long-established habits.
The episode then turns to one of the defining tools of modern tree work: the chainsaw.
Tracing STIHL's history and the development of the top-handle saw, it reveals how weight,
balance, power and safety had to be rethought for use in the canopy.
Alongside the machinery sits a quieter question: what does good tree work actually look like?
In an age drawn to dramatic removals, the episode makes the case for skilled pruning,
thoughtful decisions and work that may be almost invisible when it is done well.

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Episode 3 - Collaboration, Systems and Industry
Development
The biggest changes in arboriculture rarely come from one person working alone.
Episode three follows the movement of ideas through international networks and into
practical systems, equipment and products. From early ISA meetings to complex rigging and
access solutions, it shows how knowledge crosses borders when climbers, designers,
engineers and manufacturers begin solving the same problem together.
Real-world sequences reveal the planning behind difficult tree work: assessing compromised
trees, understanding anchors, calculating forces and creating controlled systems where
instinct alone is not enough.
The episode also tells the story of the TreeMagineers and their collaboration with
Teufelberger and DMM, including the development of the treeMOTION harness. What began
as the experience of working climbers became a global product through testing, engineering,
certification and trust.
At its heart, this is an episode about what becomes possible when practical experience meets
technical expertise - and when strong ideas are allowed to grow through collaboration.

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Episode 4 - Rigging, Knowledge and the People Behind
the Hardware
Before purpose-built rigging equipment, arborists relied on rope, bark, friction and
experience. Every tree demanded a solution created in the moment.
Episode four traces the evolution of rigging from natural crotches and wraps around stems to
engineered lowering devices, blocks and connectors. Through the work of figures including
Donald F. Blair, the Hobbs system, Denny Moorhouse and the team at DMM, the film reveals
the people behind hardware now regarded as standard.
The episode explores the forces involved when heavy timber begins to move and the
consequences of getting those forces wrong. It also looks inside the workshops where ideas
were shaped by hand, tested, broken and rebuilt.
Yet the most important lesson comes before any rope is loaded: sometimes the most skilled
decision is to walk away. This episode is about control, restraint and the responsibility that
comes with having stronger equipment at your disposal.

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Episode 5 - Competition, Collaboration and Innovation
What began as a test of climbing skill became one of the industry's most powerful spaces for
learning, innovation and community.
Episode five explores the rise of tree climbing competitions and their influence far beyond the
event itself. From early contests to international championships, the episode shows how
climbers refine technique, perform under pressure and exchange ideas with people from
different countries and working cultures.
The Masters' Challenge brings together planning, precision, efficiency and composure, but
winning is only part of the story. First-time competitors reveal how mistakes, disqualifications
and failure can become the moments that drive the greatest improvement.
Competitions also became testing grounds for new equipment and a meeting place for
climbers, manufacturers and designers. Products such as the treeMOTION harness could be
observed, questioned and improved in front of the people most capable of pushing them to
their limits.
This is an episode about ambition - but also generosity, sportsmanship and a global
community built around the desire to become better.

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Episode 6 - Mechanical Advantage
Cranes, grapple saws and helicopters can transform the scale and speed of tree work, but they
do not remove risk. They move it, concentrate it and demand an entirely different level of
planning.
Episode six enters the world of mechanical advantage, following operations where climbers,
machine operators and ground crews must work as one system. Crane-assisted removals
reveal the importance of balance, cut selection and communication when enormous pieces of
timber are suspended above the site.
Grapple saws take the operator out of the canopy and place cutting power at the end of a
machine, changing both exposure and the way the tree is dismantled. Helicopter extraction
pushes coordination even further, where weather, payload, flight time and rigging leave
almost no room for error.
The work is spectacular, but the episode's real focus is discipline. When the planning is right,
even the most extreme operation can appear calm, controlled and almost routine.

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Episode 7 - The Global Conversation
The way arborists share knowledge has changed as dramatically as the equipment they use.
The final episode traces the journey from books, meetings and local crews to early online
forums and today's global social-media platforms. TreeBuzz and other communities allowed
ideas, prototypes and techniques to be discussed across borders long before short-form video
became part of everyday life.
Through creators including Jacob Rogers and Dan Holliday, the episode explores how
instructional content and complete job films opened the industry to a worldwide audience. An
arborist working alone could suddenly learn from climbers thousands of miles away, find
work, build friendships and become part of a much larger professional community.
But visibility brings responsibility. The camera can educate, but it can also hide context,
simplify risk and reward spectacle over good practice.
The series closes by asking what it means to influence an industry - and how the next
generation will choose to pass the knowledge forward.