L’Amour – The Sowers Group
From the album Cheza! (Dance) – written by Mike Matumaini
This is the song we will be producing as a music video, in partnership with Pamoja Ministries in Tanzania.
Lyrics (Swahili and French)
Kumbuka amri kuu tulio pewa ni upendo
Remember, the greatest commandment we have been given is love
Hata uombe sana bila upendo ni bure
Even if you pray a lot, without love it’s worthless
(Kumbuka amri kuu tulio pewa ni upendo)
Remember, the greatest commandment we have been given is love
Hata uimbe sana bila upendo ni bure
Even if you sing, without love it is worthless
(Kumbuka amri kuu tulio pewa ni upendo)
Remember, the greatest commandment we have been given is love
Hata uhubiri sana bila upendo ni bure
Even if you preach a lot, without love it is worthless
(Kumbuka amri kuu tulio pewa ni upendo)
Remember, the greatest commandment we have been given is love
Kwa kukosa upendo tuna sengenya wengine
It is a lack of love that causes us to gossip
(Kumbuka amri kuu tulio pewa ni upendo)
Remember, the greatest commandment we have been given is love
Kwa kukosa upendo tuna gawanya makanisa
By lacking love we divide churches
(Kumbuka amri kuu tulio pewa ni upendo)
Remember, the greatest commandment we have been given is love
Commandment, Commandment, Commandment de Dieu
Commandment from God
(Kumbuka)
Remember
L’amour c’est le grand commandement de Dieu
Love is the greatest commandment of God
Nosakya ole lo’ondo
Where can I find love?
A tata ine lo’ondo
Oh my Lord! Love
Nosakya ole lo’ondo
Where can I find love?
A tata ine lo’ondo
Oh my Lord! Love
Nita tosha wapi upendo
Where am I going to find love?
Kwa Yesu kuko upendo ah
I finally find love in Jesus ah
Oh upendo ah
Oh love ah
Tags: music video, Pamoja Ministries, Sowers Group, Tanzania, training
We just completed this video for the Arabian Peninsula Partnership. The goal is to share stories of how God is moving to reveal Himself to people in the Arabian Peninsula. Despite severe persecution and restrictions on sharing the gospel, many are turning to Christ because Christians in other countries are praying.
We filmed the story segments here in the US and used footage that has been gathered by workers in the A.P. to created this video. It is posted also on YouTube and other internet sites where it is available to anyone who wants to learn and pray.
We are also creating a DVD with almost 60 videos about many topics for prayer for the Arabian Peninsula.
Tags: Arabian Peninsula, Islam, Muslims, prayer
Sowers Group album cover
The Sowers Group is an up-and-coming musical group from East Africa. Their roots are in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, and Tanzania. Their personal stories of survival in the midst of civil war, of hope, and of faith, are powerful influences in their music. Their musical style blends modern and traditional East African and gospel influences to create a powerful presence on record and stage.
We’re privileged to be working on the early stages of production of new music videos for The Sowers Group, in partnership with their African representatives, Pamoja Ministries. This co-production is part of our mission to come alongside strategic partners like Pamoja to help them increase their effectiveness and ability to create powerful media tools in places that are far from the media centers of North America and Europe.
Stay tuned for more news as we begin development on this exciting project.
Tags: Africa, music video, Pamoja, Sowers Group, Tanzania
Below, I’ve posted a link to a great review of our film, The Enemy God.
Doug Lucas, of Brigada.org says,
Hear me well: This is an intense film. It is sometimes graphic, sometimes heart-wrenching, but always engaging. My advice for professors of seminary classes looking for something related to spiritual warfare, anthropology, world religions, and Cross-cultural communications: Run, don’t walk, to order a copy. To anyone working in folk religions, you finally have an inside view to what goes on “inside their heads.” I can’t even put into words the “point of view” from which the story is told… because it seems to be totally Yanomamo… cross-cultural. I felt as if I was living inside the body of a Yanomamo tribesman. I spent much of my time fearing what might come next. Honest — this movie is stirring. If you have a missionary working among tribal peoples, this will give you a new perspective on prayer and its potential to make a difference. Don’t expect a heart-warming, feel-good story like something from a Disney kids’ film. Expect to be sobered. Expect to experience a perspective you’ve never felt before.
Here’s the link to the whole article: One of the Most Unique and Engaging Movies Ever Made.
Tags: Amazon, film distribution, VSN
All of a sudden, I feel like a Producer again!
Today we’re talking with partners in Tanzania to schedule a production & training trip this summer. They work with a well-known singing group and would like us to come and help them produce some music videos. We’ll make it a mentoring co-production so that, when we leave, they’ll be able to produce more, with higher quality than in the past.
Also, this weekend we’re filming some vignettes for a video that will help raise awareness and prayer for the Arabian Peninsula. The final video will be distributed virally via YouTube and other sites. We’re creating it to be translated into multiple languages.
I had the privilege to meet with a small group of people involved in visual storytelling recently. The group represents a variety of organizations, both for-profit and non-profit, who have a passion for visual story in many forms. We gathered to help give direction to the Visual Story Network. Here’s a quick video summation of the meetings, created by Clyde Taber, the lead facilitator of VSN.
Find more videos like this on Visual Story Network
Tags: visual story network, VSN
We got our first look at the new web site for the release of The Enemy God in India. It’s almost ready for the public, so I’ll wait to post the link ’till they work out the last bugs. It’s pretty cool – multiple languages, lots of animation, very professional. The same distributor is also working on our release in Korea, Singapore, and Malaysia, then Scandinavia. Odd mix, but we’re cool with that.
We are also fielding inquiries from other territories. We’ll get a report from our sales agent very soon about what they heard at the summer and fall film and television markets. We know of some deals, but are hoping to hear more definite news. It is a long process; we’ve been told by many people that indie films can go through two or more entire cycles of film markets before all of the rights are sold or there’s no more interest.
Patience is something we have learned – we’ve been working on the film for almost eight years already!
Tags: film distribution, India film
We have launched our own, small, web store here on the site. In it, you can find the DVD for The Enemy God film, a great book on the Yanomamö that recounts some of the same stories told in the film, and more to come in the future.
Click here to go to the store (or the tab up at the top of the page.)
Thanks for supporting our work by buying things from us!
One of our major projects (THE major project for the last few years) is now available on a new DVD release. Yai Wanonabälewä: The Enemy God is a film that tells the true story of a powerful Yanomamö shaman in the Amazon. Recounting 40 years of his life, the film shows the supernatural struggle for the survival of his people.
You can get all of the information about the film at the film’s web site: TheEnemyGod.com
Get your own DVD today! Just click on the “STORE” tab at the top of this page. Or click HERE to go there directly.
Tags: Amazon, The Enemy God, Yanomami, Yanomamo
We are working to develop projects that will involve training in visual storytelling. While our core expertise is in film/video production, we also have partners who have experience in other visual arts including dance, painting, photography, and theater.
The aim of the the visual story training projects will be to bring together artists from different regions and cultures to come alongside emerging artists to help them to grow. This may be done through creative seminars about specific topics or in collaborative projects where an experienced team will come alongside those with less experience in order to co-produce a project in a mentoring/empowering relationship. Our goal is to raise up artists and increase the capacities and effectiveness rather than merely come in and ‘do something for’ a community or organization.
As we develop these projects we will be posting information here and on other networks to open the opportunities up to a wider circle of people.