Let's Do It!
In 2007 an Estonian entrepreneur was illuminated by a beautifully simple idea: our planet is full of garbage - let’s start with our own backyard and clean it up! He sold his profitable IT business and dedicated himself full-time to improving the world.
When asked nicely, people are happy to help. Genius lies in simplicity - on May 3rd 2008, 50 000 volunteers (5% of population!) from tiny Estonia removed 10 000 tons of garbage! Since then Rainer’s team has exported the same model to 96 countries worldwide, with over 6 million participants! Exhilarated by success, the time seems ripe to accomplish something of true magnitude…
The Mediterranean Sea has provided myths, seafood, and routes for trade and war throughout millennia. It has shaped the ancient civilisations of Egypt and Greece, Roman and Persian empires, Phoenicians and Ottomans, Islamic Golden Age and European colonisation. And, finally, it has become too dirty!
As the region is enveloped in financial, political and humanitarian crises, the colossal undertaking of Mediterranean cleanup was to translate into a campaign of unity and reconciliation. With the guidance and support from Estonian headquarters, the local activists approached the task with southern cheerfulness and youthful enthusiasm, but their first attempt in 2014 was a failure, with barely 20 000 participants.
But setbacks don't deter true idealists. Tallinn headquarters has now tightened the reins on the lax Mediterranean approach and designated Elina, a full-time prison guard (with strict attitude and model looks) to oversee the regrouping process. The efforts are now expected to culminate in May 2016, when a million volunteers across 22 countries will (hopefully) set aside their religious, cultural and language differences to collectively clean their common sea.
When asked nicely, people are happy to help. Genius lies in simplicity - on May 3rd 2008, 50 000 volunteers (5% of population!) from tiny Estonia removed 10 000 tons of garbage! Since then Rainer’s team has exported the same model to 96 countries worldwide, with over 6 million participants! Exhilarated by success, the time seems ripe to accomplish something of true magnitude…
The Mediterranean Sea has provided myths, seafood, and routes for trade and war throughout millennia. It has shaped the ancient civilisations of Egypt and Greece, Roman and Persian empires, Phoenicians and Ottomans, Islamic Golden Age and European colonisation. And, finally, it has become too dirty!
As the region is enveloped in financial, political and humanitarian crises, the colossal undertaking of Mediterranean cleanup was to translate into a campaign of unity and reconciliation. With the guidance and support from Estonian headquarters, the local activists approached the task with southern cheerfulness and youthful enthusiasm, but their first attempt in 2014 was a failure, with barely 20 000 participants.
But setbacks don't deter true idealists. Tallinn headquarters has now tightened the reins on the lax Mediterranean approach and designated Elina, a full-time prison guard (with strict attitude and model looks) to oversee the regrouping process. The efforts are now expected to culminate in May 2016, when a million volunteers across 22 countries will (hopefully) set aside their religious, cultural and language differences to collectively clean their common sea.
Those Who Dare
The foreign minister of the tiny Icelandic nation fights for the independence of the Baltic states as they struggle to brake free from the USSR.
Three small nations by the Baltic Sea, then long forgotten in the minds of the West, were the first countries of the Soviet block to restore their independence as the USSR collapsed in 1991. Facing military suppression during their independence struggle and no support from the major democratic powers of the west, help came, unexpectedly, from two small nations: Iceland and Denmark.
An avid supporter of the Baltic states, Icelandic foreign minister Jon Baldvin Hannibalsson not only lent his voice to their cause in the international political arena to which the Baltic representatives were not admitted, - he also stood by their side in the streets of Vilnius when Soviet tanks invaded the Lithuanian capital. His struggle is at the core of this film, along with that of several individuals who carried the heaviest weight of bringing down the Soviet empire.
Three small nations by the Baltic Sea, then long forgotten in the minds of the West, were the first countries of the Soviet block to restore their independence as the USSR collapsed in 1991. Facing military suppression during their independence struggle and no support from the major democratic powers of the west, help came, unexpectedly, from two small nations: Iceland and Denmark.
An avid supporter of the Baltic states, Icelandic foreign minister Jon Baldvin Hannibalsson not only lent his voice to their cause in the international political arena to which the Baltic representatives were not admitted, - he also stood by their side in the streets of Vilnius when Soviet tanks invaded the Lithuanian capital. His struggle is at the core of this film, along with that of several individuals who carried the heaviest weight of bringing down the Soviet empire.
Skype Story
This is a film about probably one of the biggest technology projects in Estonia and the whole world through all times, and it takes us to the largest business transaction in the history of Estonian economy – this is a film about Skype. Swede Niklas Zennström, Dane Janus Friis and their Estonian tech team overcome big odds to create Kazaa, and later Skype, two of the most successful programs of the 21st century. Estonia, 2005. The Strand Hotel in Pärnu. A party celebrating the $2.6 billion sale of Skype to eBay. Skype programmers Jaan Tallinn, Priit Kasesalu, Ahti Heinla and Toivo Annus join CEOs Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis as they celebrate the deal. Niklas hangs like a gorilla from the rafters of the spa, watching his buddies’ party hard down below. Estonians and Friis wave up at him, then shock the eBay brass by leaping – fully clothed – into the swimming pool. Skype is something with what about couple of billion people in our planet have personal contact. Selling Skype, buying it back and re-selling it is a story which could be from a detective novel. A story full of contrasts – from apartment block in Tallinn to Silicon Valley, from primitive computer games to private planes, from wild parties to complicated lawsuits. This is a magnificent story with very colorful characters and a lot of crazy image material. The visuals would be combined with interviews and inside archive footage and tied in together nicely by comic book style animation.