Archipelago Films

The name of the company is associated with its first film, The Spirit of Kuna Yala, made in 1991. The film features the Kuna Indians of Panama's San Blas archipelago as they "unite to protect their rainforest homeland, Kuna Yala, and the tradition it inspires." The film is told entirely in the words of the Kunas.[9]

The company's second film, Children of Fate: Life and Death in a Sicilian Family, was nominated for an Academy Award for best documentary.[10][11][12] The film follows up on the same Sicilian family documented in the 1961 film Cortile Cascino, which was directed by Andrew Young's father, Robert Young.[13] In the updated portrait, Angela Capra is still fighting for her family, against "a vicious cycle of poverty, ignorance and crime" in a Palermo slum.[14] Children of Fate won the Grand Jury Prize and the Cinematography Award at the Sundance Film Festival.[15]

In 1996, Young and Todd produced, directed, and photographed Cutting Loose, a feature-length documentary about the New Orleans Mardi Gras, for French and German television.[16]

Archipelago Films has also collaborated with Edward James Olmos and his company Olmos Productions for several feature documentaries. One of these films, commissioned by the United States Justice Department, It Ain't Love, is a story of teenage dating violence, following members of a young improv company as they re-enact their abusive relationships.[17] Subsequently, they directed the HBO documentary: "Americanos: Latino Life in the United States’’ which featured notable Hispanic icons, including Carlos Santana and Tito Puente.[18] Their depiction of the lives of teenage gang members in Eastern Los Angeles, Lives in Hazard, was introduced by president Bill Clinton primetime on NBC.[19][20]

In addition to contributing to various nature series and productions, Archipelago has produced a number of nature films. Archipelago's Madagascar: A World Apart was featured as part of the PBS series Living Edens.[21] Archipelago Films has also had an ongoing collaboration with the Wildlife Conservation Society's Bronx Zoo, working on the media components of new exhibits, including the film at the Congo Gorilla Forest exhibit.[7][22]

Recently, Archipelago Films has been filming wildlife in Eastern North America. Their footage of the breeding rituals of the North American wood duck was used in the PBS Nature show An Original DUCKumentary, which won the 2013 Emmy Award for Outstanding Nature Programming, and was nominated for Best Factual Series.[23][24]

Archipelago Films is currently in post-production on Backyard Wilderness, their upcoming 3D Giant Screen film.[25][1][26] The film features the wildlife found in the average suburban backyard, and will be released in March 2018.[25][1][26]

• Official website
• YouTube page