Film

KARAKA, THE SEED OF THE CHANGE

• Courageous
• Adventure
• Inspirational

NEW REWARD FOR THE SUPORTERS OF THE "KARAKA, THE SEED OF THE CHANGE"

DVD WITH FINISHED FILM will go to people with top suggestions regarding the film topic, theme or other cool suggestions/ feedback.

Check out "RECENT CONVERSATIONS" tab of the project to find out more details.

NEW TRAILER "The Karaka blues":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fk56LugeZY

One of our fuelers Gwenael Mourmant sent some video material from his Karaka voyages, through Atlantic, Chagos, Hong-Kong and Filipines. Her you can have a taste of som "Karaka daily blues".

Thanks Gwen!

Dear Friend,
Welcome onboard my fueling page for the documentary film in preparation “KARAKA, THE SEED OF THE CHANGE”.

What is the purpose of my idea being here on the rocket hub?
I would like to ask you  to help me grow the idea into a real film for everyone to see. Films can only be made through the involvement and collaboration of many people. You can be one of the people who will make “KARAKA, THE SEED OF THE CHANGE” become a Film, a Message.

How can you help me? If you like the idea and you would like to support it please click on the button “FUEL THIS PROJECT”. Than you can choose one of the rewards with which you will support the project.

For example: you would like to fuel the project with 50$. Choose the reward  for 50$ and you will get signed finished film on DVD, signed CD by composer Noe Gonzalez with film music, high resolution photos from Karaka voyage, you will be included in the list of film supporters and last but not least you will get my gratitude for being part of the project. Your 50$ will be saved on my rocket hub account while the project is active for  90 days on it. After that all the money collected will be transferred to me to be used for filmmaking.

So what is the idea behind the documentary film: “KARAKA THE SEED OF THE CHANGE?”
Here it goes:
“Karaka the Seed of the Change” is the film about personal journey of one man, who took the courage and started living according to his conscience, beliefs and wishes. Respecting environment and people his in contact with. Too good to be true?
Documentary film “Karaka the Seed of the Change” takes you on the voyage, where you can have a taste of it.

We know that our food is poisoned, that our environment is going crazy, that diversity of species is quickly reducing because each day human population increases by hundreds of thousands. People work in jobs they don´t like, doing things they don´t like, living the lives they don´t like simply because they believe there is no alternative to it. Looks like that something is going terribly wrong with our civilization.
What can we do about it?
Tom figured out a solution that makes sense for him.
He want to pursue things that he values and do them now.
What can I do about it? This documentary film.

Synopsis

Tom is a 31 years old sailor who lives permanently on 17m long sailing boat Karaka. He is French but his passport makes him resident of Mayotte -an island in Indian Ocean.
He bought Karaka for 1$ from its owner in Hong Kong. She was destined for scrapyard. He repaired her and started to sail. By “giving” her new life Tom changed his own life.
He first set sail in 2005 and he has never stopped since. Sailing is not a vacation to him, it is his way of life. He decided to live self sustainable way, the way he chooses and not the way he is pressed to live.
Agricultural over exploration, famine, war, slavery and all the unsustainable old ways of life brought us to the point of no return. There must be a “new” way of how humans define our existence. Tom is trying to find this way by living it.
The only permanent crew beside Tom is his girlfriend Kim and their cat.
He sustains the boat by taking crew, for an exchange of a small fee, to sail with him.  
So far they have sailed: islands in South East Asia, South China Sea, across the Indian Ocean twice, round the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, across the Atlantic, up the coast of Brazil, into the Amazon river system, around the Caribbean, through the Panama canal and lately up to the Pacific coast of Mexico. Forty thousand miles later they are going on strong.
All kinds of people come to sail on Karaka; the ones who ask similar questions but also people who at first want just to sail, but being in contact with Tom and his crew they start to realize that “The Change” is not only necessary - it can also be pleasant.
Tom´s choice is contagious to other people, who somehow start to change their own lives, finding their own ways.

New crew members board Karaka. People from all walks of life; adventurers, rich kids who don´t want to be immersed into the “system”, environmentalists, the seekers. Why did they come?
Tom and Kim accept them into the “big family” of the more than 80 people that already cruised on Karaka.
As all those characters share the life on board the ship, the interaction of all the different views, the richness of the lifestyle, the sheers abundance of possibilities - sailing, fishing, playing music, the removal from the accepted norm, makes each reflect about hers/his life choices.
The voyage they make is not just a geographical one.
Will we see new crew members also emerging as a persons who realize they too can make their own choices? Find out what way they can change the world into a place they feel comfortable living in?

What Tom is doing seems impossible to fit in our imagination of how one defines hers/his daily life. Can it last? Tom is not worrying about the future. He says : ”For the moment we're doing great and we'll change our lifestyle as soon as we feel like it”. That is what makes “the best choice” the best; it changes according to personal growth and circumstances. It is always best choice -now.
Tom knows that there are ups and downs in everybody´s lives. He takes life as it comes; one day is a hurricane on horizon the next day he is bathing in crystal clear water.

PROJECT STATUS
At the moment Karaka is in the dry dock awaiting another refit after her extensive and continuous sailing. For a small amount of money Tom bought another sailing boat - Orianne. Again he rebuild her and is now sailing towards Australia where he wants to sell it (you can follow their progresses here: http://blog.mailasail.com/belmont). His intention is to use money from the sale to make Karaka shine again. Make her ready for new adventure.
This is when I board the ship with my camera and shooting can start. This should be in the January/February of 2012.
To do that I need your support.

MONEY
So where does your money go to?
-to get the shooting equipment, which can whitstand the harsh environment on the ocean
-to buy plane tickets
-to sustain 6 months of shooting

Although the $15 000,00 might seem like a lot of money - in terms of filmmaking it is really low-budget. But I am very grateful for your every little willingness to support me. Thank you very much!

WHY IS THIS SO IMPORTANT FOR ME?
I love to make films from inspirational stories; you can check some of the films I did here: http://vimeo.com/16630621 (check up more about myself in "about me" section).
But “Karaka, the Seed of the Change” is with your help my first truthfully independent film.

Here is my stand: I have quit my job as TV director and came to Berlin to do this. I am putting the nine to five job I have here right now, which pays my rent and bills on the line. I will be away from woman I love and my family for quite some time.
As much as this film is about Tom and Karaka it is also about me. I am one of those people who will board the Karaka seeking the change. I want to learn from Tom and people on board the Karaka.
Will this experience change me? It does already. I guess I can´t inspire any one to make the choice, if I am not doing it myself.
My goal is to do a whole series of documentaries showing different paths people are taking today to make the most of their lives.

All this years I am working in media business and all the experiences I collected so far led me to this moment - to Tom and Karaka.
I believe strongly in the whole concept of “Karaka, the Seed of the Change”. I enjoy so much working on it.
I truly believe this will be a good movie, and I will do all my best to make it so.

I am thrilled about the Change happening right now in the world - crowd funding proves it.
Thanks for your support and for spreading the word.

Thanks to Noe Gonzalez who did music for the trailer and to Benjamin Lorch who has lent his voice for the voice over.

I would also like to thank to all Karaka crew members who have provided me with photos for the trailer.

Thank you very much!

Want to read more? Follow me on the blog:

http://onionfilms-karaka.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Karaka-the-Seed-of-the-Change/139098626186693

Here you can find out more about Tom and Karaka.

http://karaka.voila.net/

FIRST 5 SUPPORTERS WILL GET SPECIAL SURPRISE AWARDS!