Our new exclusive online premiere The Linguists (directed by Seth Kramer, Daniel A. Miller, and Jeremy Newberger) is the feature length documentary that was on everybody’s lips at Sundance 2008.
Half of the world’s languages are heading for extinction, and The Linguists follows two scientist-adventurers as they travel the world in a race to document indigenous tongues that are hanging on by a thread. From Oklahoma to South Africa, the pair meets some of the last remaining speakers of endangered languages around the globe.
Karol Martesko-Fenster, our film publisher, says:
“The filmmakers have crafted a compelling story that weaves travelogue together with the urgent sustainability issue of the world’s disappearing languages. The resulting documentary appeals to film fans and the growing group of linguists worldwide.”
The documentary has screened at scores of film festivals worldwide and recently aired on PBS. It will get its online première on Babelgum web and mobile from April 20th – but you can watch the trailer and a selection of clips now.
The Linguists meet the last Pazih speaker in Taiwan
Calling all Gorillaz fans: Bananaz, the behind-the-scenes doc about the band, will be screening on Babelgum from April 20th as the first ever global, online film première prior to its theatrical a release worldwide.
Cartoon band Gorillaz was created by Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett. They released their self-titled debut album in 2001 and went on to take the world by storm. For six years director Ceri Levy filmed the Gorillaz animators, musicians and singers as they worked, and the result is this free-wheeling, honest and sometimes hilarious account of the creative process behind the world’s most successful virtual band.
The film has already gained cult status following screenings at film festivals around the world from Berlin to Edinburgh to SXSW. Babelgum viewers will be able to watch it full-length from April 20th, but a large chunk of the film will be visible in the run-up to the première, through a selection of clips on Babelgum web and mobile (5 clips are available now and will be refreshed with a new selection from time to time).
To launch the project, we organized a special screening at the Apple Store in SoHo, NYC on March 20th. Thanks to all the fans that showed up and made the event a success! Another screening will take place at the Apple Store in London next week on April 2nd at 6.30pm.
Babelgum recently acquired worldwide exclusive internet and mobile rights for a series of inventive short documentaries (press release here).
RADAR, from WPB Labs, is a weekly series of informative, inspiring 3 minute made-for-mobile docs.
One episode will go out each Monday for the next twelve weeks, starting this week.
Each documentary gives an incisive insider’s view of innovative events and projects across various creative disciplines, from music to comic art.
Our film channel Publisher Karol Martesko-Fenster says: “Essentially they are mini docs that get to the heart of the subject matter, shot with a commercial and music video mentality by award winning filmmakers from the WBP network. Babelgum’s exclusive premiere of RADAR reaffirms our mission to be the leading online and mobile destination for cutting-edge storytellers.”
Check out Episode 1, “Next Door Neighbor”, currently showing on Babelgum web and mobile.
Radar Episode 1: Next Door Neighbor
The first original production by and for Babelgum, Downstream focuses on the controversy surrounding the multi-billion dollar development of Alberta’s oil sands.
This beautifully photographed documentary, directed by OSCAR® and Emmy-nominated filmmaker Leslie Iwerks, is an eye-opening investigation into one of the world’s most polluting oil operations.
The film examines the environmental, economic and health issues surrounding the oil sands development. Iwerks interviewed ecologists, Canadian politicians, Fort Chipewyan residents and a courageous doctor who raised the alarm after noticing unusually high cancer rates in the local community.
As the LA Times reviewer wrote, “There’s a price to be paid for all our gas guzzling”, and Downstream gives us a rare glimpse into the human price of the oil industry.
Watch the short documentary (33min) and behind-the-scenes footage now on the new Our Earth channel and find out more on the Downstream page on our website.
We’ve just released a new version of Babelgum Mobile, the free-to-use mobile video application that we launched in the UK and Italy in December.
The new version has been released for the first time in the US too, and is available for free download on iPhone and iPod Touch devices as of now. It can be used in 3G and Wi-Fi mode so users can enjoy Babelgum wherever they are, on-the-go.
A version of the mobile application for G-Phone 1 will release later this month, with one for G-Phone 2 coming in mid-April, and we’ll gradually be extending it to Blackberry Storm, Samsung Omnia and Nokia N97 and 5800 handsets, thus covering most of the global 3G smartphone market.
Babelgum Mobile users will be able to enjoy a range of new web-style programming tailored to the local market, across five channels: Music, Comedy, Film, Our Earth and Metropolis. The five channels are editorially driven by professional publishers who scout and select appropriate programming for each, with online premieres and original productions from Babelgum including:
- Bananaz, a film on the virtual band Gorillaz, premiering online on Babelgum this spring;
- Our first original comedy commission, Goodnight Burbank: Hollywood Report from renowned comedian Hayden Black;
- Babelgum’s first original production Downstream, a controversial documentary from Academy Award® nominated director Leslie Iwerks about Canada’s multibillion dollar oil sands industry.
To coincide with this new release we’ve totally redesigned our website too, as you may have noticed. The new site is creatively aligned with Babelgum Mobile, and is now Flash based – that’s right, you can watch videos directly in your browser and there’s no need to download our software. It has a host of other new features to explore, including a fun “Shuffle” button.
Take a look around, we’ll be interested to have your feedback.
Following on from Bunny and American Waitress, we bring you another exclusive online première: Hamilton, the feature debut from writer and director Matthew Porterfield.
The film is set over two sweltering hot summer days in Hamilton, a diverse, blue-collar neighborhood in north-east Baltimore, where Porterfield grew up – if you’re a fan of “The Wire”, this is a great chance to see another, less gritty side to the city.
Made on a shoestring budget using non-professional actors, Hamilton takes us into the lives of two young, accidental parents, Lena and Joe. The pace is slow and meditative with a pared-down narrative structure which, in the director’s own words, “allows for the cultivation and interpretation of things underlying.”
Here’s what The New Yorker’s film critic had to say about Hamilton: “A minor miracle [… ] One of the most original, moving and accomplished American independent films in recent years. […]. [Porterfield’s] tender yet unsentimental images convey the graceful rhythms and quiet sorrows of young lives on hold”.
See for yourself on our Indie Film page, where the film is screening until April 7th.
Just a reminder for those wishing to have their say in our second Online Film Festival: you still have just over 3 weeks left to cast your votes (voting ends at 1pm GMT on April 2nd).
Watch festival entries in all four categories here, or focus on the individual sections for the Animation, Short Film, Mini Masterpiece and Documentary awards
If you’re not sure where to start or are looking for a specific entry, take a look at the full Festival program, here – where you can also leave comments and see which films other viewers have recommended.
Remember, you can vote either through our website or using the Babelgum Mobile application, currently available in the UK and Italy for the iPhone, Nokia N95, N96 and N6210 handsets.
Have fun and enjoy playing your part in our search for talented filmmakers!
