Mighty Ships is on the brink of its season four, a testament to Exploration Productions Inc’s success with the homegrown series.

Access is a key component to the series, says director of production Edwina Follows, who says she and her team have earned the needed trust to get behind the scenes. (An episode for the upcoming season will take viewers on board the USCGC Bertholf built for the US Coast Guard, which patrols the waters for drugs and weapons.)

“The ships are now coming to us,” she tells Playback Daily. “We’ve built up trust and that’s reflected in the dramatic scenes – that allows us to tell better stories. The ship is the main character and has the qualities of any hero: it’s on a mission, faces dangers and challenges and is supported by secondary characters like the sea captain, cook, first mate and so on.”

As a result, Mighty Ships has attracted international audiences, as Follows notes the popularity of the series as Australia’s Seven Network picked up the entire series library last year. It’s a “ship-loving nation,” notes Follows.” It’s also been sold to Smithsonian Channel HD in the US, and the series is also available to viewers in the UK, Europe, Scandinavia and Southeast Asia.

Toronto-based EPI is currently filming another six one-hour eps for season five, and have their fingers crossed for a sixth season. It will also be looking into the possibility of having more eps per season.

But the prodco has plenty to keep itself busy in the meantime – Follows noted that she and the team are also just entering production on new series Mighty Planes, featuring “big honking planes,” including one that transforms into a hospital, complete with laser surgery capabilities.

It was first shopped around at MIPTV last April and has already been presold to Channel 7 (Australia) and Discovery UK’s Quest channel, aiming for a January 2012 delivery date.

The series is produced in association with Discovery Channel Canada. Season four debuts Wednesday, February 23.