A few days ago at the Sundance Film Festival I sat down with producer Adrian Grenier and director Joshua Zeman to talk about their planned documentary 52: The Search for the Loneliest Whale in the World, for which they are currently seeking financing through crowdfunding.  Here's the official synopsis:

52: The Search for the Loneliest Whale in the World is a feature length documentary that will take audiences on a journey to find the forgotten “52 Hertz Whale.” Calling out at 52 Hz, a frequency unrecognized by other whales, this mysterious creature is believed to have lived its life in solitude. It calls forever unanswered by its own kind. In our ever-present fascination with these majestic beasts, the tale of “52” has prompted an intense reaction amongst our own species, pointing to a greater awareness of human loneliness than ever before.

During our exclusive video interview, the filmmakers talked about why they want to make this movie, why they're crowdfunding, how this will be the the first time a hybrid whale will be acoustically monitored, the cool perks you can get for donating, including a Shepard Fairey screenprint, a private event with Grenier, a whale-watching experience, and more.  In addition, with the Entourage movie hitting this summer, Grenier talked a bit about the different insider events and places they filmed at and a lot more.

52-the-loneliest-whale-in-the-world-poster-image

For more on 52: The Search for the Loneliest Whale in the World, here's their Facebook, website and Twitter.

Adrian Grenier and Joshua Zeman Time Index:

  • 0:15 -  They haven’t made the documentary yet, they’ve just announced the fundraising campaign.
  • 1:14 -  On what about the story of this whale engaged them to make this movie.
  • 2:13 - The fundraising incentives and perks
  • 3:49 - This is the first time a hybrid whale will be acoustically monitored.
  • 4:50 - Potential solutions for ocean noise pollution.
  • 5:53 - The film will shoot for 20 days on an expedition boat.
  • 6:10 - On the film’s attempts to get financing.
  • 7:44 - On how the crowdfunding doesn’t just finance the film, but the saving of the whale as well.
  • 7:59 - They discuss what they learned on prior films that they’re bringing to this one.
  • 9:33 - How they got Shepard Fairey involved.
  • 10:10 - About the website www.lonelywhale.com
  • 11:18 - Have they thought about taking an existing whale song and converting it to the lonely whale’s frequency?
  • 12:33 - Adrian says the Entourage movie turned out great.
  • 13:00 - On how cool whale watching can be.
  • 14:10 - Grenier talks about the different insider events and places they filmed the Entourage movie in.