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ABOUT
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26-year-old charmer Daniel Dembele is equal parts West African and European, and looking to make his mark on the world. Seizing the moment at a crossroads in his life, Daniel decides to return to his homeland in Mali and start a local business building solar panels – the first of its kind in the sun drenched nation. Daniel’s goal is to electrify the households of rural communities, 99% of which live without power. BURNING IN THE SUN tells the story of Daniel’s journey growing ... (read more)
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ABOUT
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26-year-old charmer Daniel Dembele is equal parts West African and European, and looking to make his mark on the world. Seizing the moment at a crossroads in his life, Daniel decides to return to his homeland in Mali and start a local business building solar panels – the first of its kind in the sun drenched nation. Daniel’s goal is to electrify the households of rural communities, 99% of which live without power. BURNING IN THE SUN tells the story of Daniel’s journey growing the shaky startup into a viable company, and of the business’ impact on Daniel’s first customers in the tiny village of Banko. Taking controversial stances on climate change, poverty, and African self-sufficiency, the film explores what it means to grow up as a man, and what it takes to prosper as a nation.
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WHAT MAKES THIS PROJECT DIFFERENT
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Founding a small business is something that is deeply embedded in American and European culture, a topic to which many can relate. But most have never seen this universal kind of effort take place in Africa, traditionally marked out by the media as the land of the starving, the war ravaged and the hopeless. In our portrayal of Daniel, who undertakes a familiar effort in an unfamiliar environment, we attempt to open the door to what is possible in Africa, and update Western cultural awareness with a profound dose of optimism. For us, Daniel’s work shatters notions of the need for African dependence on outside aid and embraces the view that ultimately it is Africans who will develop Africa in their own way.
Now more than ever before, people around the world have come to see green-collar jobs not just as a pipedream catchphrase but as an absolute necessity for survival in our rapidly changing economies and environments. Daniel’s work reminds us that every country needs a leader who will encourage this kind of transformative change. His charisma, intelligence, and daring suggest a young Barack Obama, and it is difficult not to imagine him one day taking high office in Mali.
Visual contrasts, like a bright blue shiny modern solar panel resting on the ground of a pale brown dusty village, confront a viewer’s preconceptions about solar energy and about Africa. Scenes shot in natural sunlight and total darkness work strategically to place the viewer in the characters’ shoes. The original score combines emotional orchestral sounds with modern R&B swagger and traditional Malian folk music to sonically reinforce the idea that something utterly new and original is taking place. Handheld camerawork emphasizes Daniel’s infectious energy and constant movement forward, while serene shots of rural Mali’s slow, small-town pace contrast with Daniel’s kineticism and the urban chaos of the capital, and punctuate the cultural divide between them. Throughout the film, expert interviews and voiceover narration are omitted in favor of giving space to both Daniel and the people of Banko to tell their own story, in their own words.
Strikingly beautiful, surprisingly emotional, and a revolution of ideas, BURNING IN THE SUN invents a portrait of what it means to be African and Green.
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ALSO FIND THIS PROJECT ON
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TEAM
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CambriaMatlow
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This feature length documentary film takes an intimate look at solar energy and micro-enterprise in West Africa through the personal stories of one daring man and a brave village.
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| VIP PERKS |
| $25 or more = Name in credits |
| Your name will live forever in celluloid, and we will be eternally grateful for your help. |
| 1 Claimed |
| $1,000 or more = Associate Producer Credit |
| You are really making a difference for us. Congratulation, you're an Associate Producer and will be known as such publicly. |
| 0 Claimed |
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| HOW THESE FUNDS WILL BE USED |
| We are so close! Thank you for navigating to BURNING IN THE SUN's funding page.
We continue to seek assistance to make BURNING IN THE SUN the important and provocative film it promises to become.
Incoming funds will be used to pay for a composer, music clearances, color correction, sound mixing, and an online editor. Festivals and television distributors are asking for us (!!!) and we have to get be ready for them. Sundance, South by Southwest, and IDFA in the Netherlands have expressed interest in premiering BURNING IN THE SUN to festival audiences, while German, French, Deutsch, South African and American television distributors are already looking to see our final cut.
To help us realize our vision, you can make an ONLINE TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATION to the project through our fiscal sponsor IFP (The Independent Film Project).
CLICK on the link below to DONATE through IFP:
http://fiscalsponsorship.ifp.org/Project.cfm?Pr...
You can also donate via check. Please make your check payable to IFP, and make sure to include BURNING IN THE SUN on the memo line.
If you wish to donate directly to Birdgirl Productions, and do not need a tax deduction, please make your check out to 'Birdgirl Productions.'
Please mail all checks to:
Birdgirl Productions
87 Summit Street #2
Brooklyn, NY 11231
Thanks very much for your support!
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Kevin contributed
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(9 months ago)
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CambriaMatlow posted an announcement
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(1 year ago)
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Chicken and Egg Pictures and Working Films have selected BURNING IN THE SUN as one of 3 films to participate in ‘Story Leads to Action: Three Work-in-Progress Documentaries’! Join us on Thursday, Dec 18th at the 92Y Tribeca in New York. The evening will be moderated by Chicken and Egg’s Judith Helfand, maker of Emmy-nominated “Blue Vinyl” and Peabody-award winning “A Healthy Baby Girl”. BURNING IN THE SUN will be joined by GARBARGE DREAMS and SEMPER FI: ALWAYS FAITHFUL. The directors from all three environmentally-themed docs will be present, as well as key outreach partners. Tickets cost $12 at the door. Starts at 8pm. More information at 92Y’s site: http://www.92y.org/shop/event_detail.asp?produc…
Hope to see you there for a very exciting evening!! |
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CambriaMatlow posted an announcement
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(1 year ago)
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BURNING IN THE SUN just received a very generous ‘I Believe in You’ Grant from Chicken & Egg Pictures! We are incredibly honored by this grant, and will be using to money to hire a composer for BURNING IN THE SUN’S original film score. This grant marks what we hope will be only the beginning of a wonderful relationship with the talented women who head up Chicken & Egg. |
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CambriaMatlow posted an announcement
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(1 year ago)
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November 2008
We are proud to announce BURNING IN THE SUN’s new fiscal sponsor: IFP (The Independent Film Project), a non profit organization created to support “the courageous work of artists and technicians working in independent film.” To make a donation to the film, visit our funding page for more information. |
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CambriaMatlow posted an announcement
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(1 year ago)
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October 2008
After a wonderful meeting with Christian Ugbode during Independent Film Week, BURNING IN THE SUN is selected as part of the National Black Programming Consortium’s online exhibit: The Masculinity Project. The project showcases different cinematic portraits of Black masculinity from around the world. Visit www.blackpublicmedia.org/catalog/channel/mascul… for more information or to see the Remix. The Masculinity Project will be the first public forum for any version of BURNING IN THE SUN – a very exciting step for the filmmakers in our journey to bring the film to a public audience. |
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| VIP PERKS |
| $25 or more = Name in credits |
| Your name will live forever in celluloid, and we will be eternally grateful for your help. |
| 1 Claimed |
| $1,000 or more = Associate Producer Credit |
| You are really making a difference for us. Congratulation, you're an Associate Producer and will be known as such publicly. |
| 0 Claimed |
|
|
| HOW THESE FUNDS WILL BE USED |
| We are so close! Thank you for navigating to BURNING IN THE SUN's funding page.
We continue to seek assistance to make BURNING IN THE SUN the important and provocative film it promises to become.
Incoming funds will be used to pay for a composer, music clearances, color correction, sound mixing, and an online editor. Festivals and television distributors are asking for us (!!!) and we have to get be ready for them. Sundance, South by Southwest, and IDFA in the Netherlands have expressed interest in premiering BURNING IN THE SUN to festival audiences, while German, French, Deutsch, South African and American television distributors are already looking to see our final cut.
To help us realize our vision, you can make an ONLINE TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATION to the project through our fiscal sponsor IFP (The Independent Film Project).
CLICK on the link below to DONATE through IFP:
http://fiscalsponsorship.ifp.org/Project.cfm?Pr...
You can also donate via check. Please make your check payable to IFP, and make sure to include BURNING IN THE SUN on the memo line.
If you wish to donate directly to Birdgirl Productions, and do not need a tax deduction, please make your check out to 'Birdgirl Productions.'
Please mail all checks to:
Birdgirl Productions
87 Summit Street #2
Brooklyn, NY 11231
Thanks very much for your support!
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Kevin
9 months ago |
$25
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Name in credits |
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| VIP PERKS |
| $25 or more = Name in credits |
| Your name will live forever in celluloid, and we will be eternally grateful for your help. |
| 1 Claimed |
| $1,000 or more = Associate Producer Credit |
| You are really making a difference for us. Congratulation, you're an Associate Producer and will be known as such publicly. |
| 0 Claimed |
|
|
| HOW THESE FUNDS WILL BE USED |
| We are so close! Thank you for navigating to BURNING IN THE SUN's funding page.
We continue to seek assistance to make BURNING IN THE SUN the important and provocative film it promises to become.
Incoming funds will be used to pay for a composer, music clearances, color correction, sound mixing, and an online editor. Festivals and television distributors are asking for us (!!!) and we have to get be ready for them. Sundance, South by Southwest, and IDFA in the Netherlands have expressed interest in premiering BURNING IN THE SUN to festival audiences, while German, French, Deutsch, South African and American television distributors are already looking to see our final cut.
To help us realize our vision, you can make an ONLINE TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATION to the project through our fiscal sponsor IFP (The Independent Film Project).
CLICK on the link below to DONATE through IFP:
http://fiscalsponsorship.ifp.org/Project.cfm?Pr...
You can also donate via check. Please make your check payable to IFP, and make sure to include BURNING IN THE SUN on the memo line.
If you wish to donate directly to Birdgirl Productions, and do not need a tax deduction, please make your check out to 'Birdgirl Productions.'
Please mail all checks to:
Birdgirl Productions
87 Summit Street #2
Brooklyn, NY 11231
Thanks very much for your support!
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| Daniel Dembele in the village of Banko (Daniel walks towards the camera as villagers check out the solar panel they have recently purchased from him )
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| Banko village at night (A fire burns outside a Banko village mud hut. )
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| Solar panel made by Daniel Dembele in Mali (Daniel Dembele will have to learn to make solar panels from scratch. The yellow voltmeter measures the energy output of the panel. Any shading on the panel will shut it down completely. )
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| Fetching water in Banko (This young adolescent girl travels through her village hauling water with a wheelbarrow.)
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| Moon Setting over Banko Mosque
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| Motorbikes in Bamako (The crowded streets of Bamako, Mali's capital city, where Daniel lives. )
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| Huts of Banko (Banko has a population of 2,000 people, all of whom live in mud huts. )
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| VIP PERKS |
| $25 or more = Name in credits |
| Your name will live forever in celluloid, and we will be eternally grateful for your help. |
| 1 Claimed |
| $1,000 or more = Associate Producer Credit |
| You are really making a difference for us. Congratulation, you're an Associate Producer and will be known as such publicly. |
| 0 Claimed |
|
|
| HOW THESE FUNDS WILL BE USED |
| We are so close! Thank you for navigating to BURNING IN THE SUN's funding page.
We continue to seek assistance to make BURNING IN THE SUN the important and provocative film it promises to become.
Incoming funds will be used to pay for a composer, music clearances, color correction, sound mixing, and an online editor. Festivals and television distributors are asking for us (!!!) and we have to get be ready for them. Sundance, South by Southwest, and IDFA in the Netherlands have expressed interest in premiering BURNING IN THE SUN to festival audiences, while German, French, Deutsch, South African and American television distributors are already looking to see our final cut.
To help us realize our vision, you can make an ONLINE TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATION to the project through our fiscal sponsor IFP (The Independent Film Project).
CLICK on the link below to DONATE through IFP:
http://fiscalsponsorship.ifp.org/Project.cfm?Pr...
You can also donate via check. Please make your check payable to IFP, and make sure to include BURNING IN THE SUN on the memo line.
If you wish to donate directly to Birdgirl Productions, and do not need a tax deduction, please make your check out to 'Birdgirl Productions.'
Please mail all checks to:
Birdgirl Productions
87 Summit Street #2
Brooklyn, NY 11231
Thanks very much for your support!
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