The BABIES Get A Due Date
Mark your calendars for April 16, 2010, the day when Focus Features and award-winning filmmaker Thomas Balmes will be delivering an extraordinary film to the screen that documents the birth and early development of four babies from the four corners of the world. From their delivery to their very first steps, BABIES breaks down the wall that stands between the documentary and its subjects, presenting an intimate portrait of the early lives of Ponijao, Mari, Bayar and Hattie from Namibia, Japan, Mongolia and California respectively.
“I dreamt of a movie theater audience that would applaud because a baby would stand on their own two feet,” said producer Alain Chabat. “These tiny things are huge commonalities for them – and we’ve all been through that, though of course most of us can’t remember. I felt we could show the commonalities as well as the differences among theses babies.”
Two years in the making with over 400 days of shooting, the camera served as an omniscient eye looking over the daily lives of these four babies as they embarked on their everyday adventure of discovering their emerging senses, abilities and the world they now inhabit.
BABIES takes viewers on an unforgettable journey from the dry lands of Namibia…
… to the metropolis of Tokyo…
… the steppes of Mongolia…
… and the modern city of San Francisco.
Serving as a nature film with people as its subject, BABIES is the rare documentary that approaches its subjects without judgement, capturing them on camera as they are and allowing them to simply be. No questions, second guessing, commendation or praise for the manner in which these children are raised, the film simply documents the events and leaves you to draw your own conclusions, if any are even needed. Although they are yet to talk, these babies speak for themselves.
Director Thomas Balmes says “What happens between parent and child is so crucial, and I hope our film reminds people of that. Sometimes, with life happening, you can get a little lazy in developing a real relationship with your kids. I myself have. I hope BABIES shows that no matter what their conditions are, wherever they live, these babies grow up happy as long as they are loved, and that this is universal.”
