Environmental documentary Planetary gets global VOD release for Earth Day
David Farnor | On 22, Apr 2015
Environmental documentary Planetary is released on VOD around the world today to mark Earth Day.
The annual celebration, which takes place every 22nd April, aims to raise awareness of the environmental issues facing the planet.
“At the heart of all of our environmental and social challenges is a profound disconnection with the natural world,” says Stephen Apkon, President of Reconsider, who have teamed up with Abramorama, Vimeo and SHFT.com to release the film.
“Planetary deals with this magnificently – not from a place of fear, but of affection. For this planet we call home and for the experience of life itself.”
The movie will be screened in major cities across the globe today, marking the first time that Vimeo has partnered to present the theatrical release of a feature film alongside its exclusive VOD release.
The documentary is a follow-up to an award-winning short film, Overview, which was featured on Vimeo Staff Picks before going on to receive nearly 7 million views. The film captivated audiences with astronauts’ stories of what it means to see the Earth from space and its success was a driving force behind the decision to make a feature length film.
“The film was incubated on Vimeo and only fitting that we release this beautiful film globally on Vimeo On Demand,” adds Jeremy Boxer of Vimeo. “A provocative and breathtaking wake-up call, Planetary is a poetic and humbling reminder that it’s time to shift our perspective.”
The film – directed by Guy Reid and edited by Steve Watts Kennedy, with DoP Christoph Ferstad – interweaves imagery from NASA Apollo missions with visions of the Milky Way, Buddhist monasteries in the Himalayas, and downtown Tokyo and Manhattan, with interviews from experts, including astronauts Ron Garan and Mae Jemison (the first African American woman in space), National Book Award winner Barry Lopez, anthropologist Wade Davis and National Geographic Explorer Elizabeth Lindsey. It is available to rent and download now through Vimeo in all countries, except for Canada. (Sorry, Canada.)
Here’s a trailer:
Photo: Garden by the bay, Singapore (Planetary Collective)
