Klaus Sparwasser studied biology at several universities in Germany with a special interest in zoology, evolution, comparative anatomy and ecology. The academic work led to a particular interest in man’s impact on natural systems. Because biology seemed to offer “limited economical value”, he did a PhD in clinical pharmacology funded by the State of Hessen.
For the next 25 years he tried not to be torn apart by the balancing act having one leg in the daily business in one of the biggest pharmaceutical multis, and the other in the field he basically wanted to work in, but did not generate enough income to sustain life and all the stuff one needs to produce films.
During that time, he started traveling to the remotest places on earth, wrote about his expeditions in travel magazines, became a regular contributor to popular scientific magazines and started to make documentaries for German television.
For the last two decades he has produced several highly recognized environmental series and nature documentaries mainly for German television, since 2017 together with his friend and filmmaker colleague Phil Hattingh.