Ring of Fire: An Indonesian Odyssey

Last updated

Ring of Fire: An Indonesian Odyssey
Ring of Fire DVD.jpg
Remastered DVD cover
Genre Documentary film
Written by Lawrence Blair
Directed by Lorne Blair
StarringJohn Chang
Narrated byLorne Blair
Lawrence Blair
Composer Mason Daring
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes5(8)
Production
Executive producers David Fanning
Chris Blair
Robin Gurney
ProducersLorne Blair
Lawrence Blair
Production location Indonesia
Running time56 minutes x 5
Production companies WGBH-TV
SavEarth Media LLC
Original release
Network PBS (US)
BBC (UK)
Release6 June (1988-06-06) 
18 July 1988 (1988-07-18)

The Ring of Fire: An Indonesian Odyssey is a series of five documentary films following the decade-long Wanderjahr [1] of the filmmaker/sibling partnership Lorne and Lawrence Blair.

Contents

Background

With financing from investors including the BBC and Ringo Starr, the Blair Brothers arrived in Indonesia from England in 1972. At that time, the Indonesian archipelago offered isolation for Neolithic cultures and their indigenous beliefs. The Blair brothers spent over two decades documenting the relationships between island ecology and their peoples.

Production

Originally edited from 80 hours of 16mm film in co-production with WGBH-TV, Boston, Ring of Fire was produced, directed and photographed by Lorne Blair [2] [3] and co-produced and written by Lawrence Blair. [4] The executive producer was Frontline's David Fanning. The films have been shown in more than 60 countries.[ citation needed ] A 2021 digital remaster was produced by SavEarth Media, an impact media company.

Series as five documentary films

No.TitleLength
(minutes)
Original air date
1Spice Island Saga58 [5] 1987 (1987)
The Blair brothers follow the footsteps of naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace on a Bugis sailboat in search of the bird of paradise to the Aru Islands near New Guinea.
2Dance of the Warriors58 [6] 1987 (1987)
The brothers sail to the islands of Komodo where they encounter the Komodo dragon, Sumba where they witness human sacrifice, western New Guinea where they meet the Asmat, and finally Bali where they build a home in a village.
3East of Krakatoa58 [7] 1987 (1987)
The Blairs descend into the active volcano Anak Krakatoa and meet the legendary 116-year-old artist Lempad. They also meet the neigong master, John Chang, known as “Dynamo Jack” and witness the funeral rites of the king of the Toraja people of the Celebes.
4Dream Wanderers of Borneo61 [8] 1987 (1987)
The brothers go in search of the nomadic Punan Dayaks.
5Beyond the Ring of Fire561996 (1996)
Lawrence Blair returns to a lost paradise at the outer edge of the known world eight years later in a retrospective voyage to many of the islands first visited and others never previously filmed.

Series as TV episodes

No.TitleLength
(minutes)
Original air dateRerun Date
1East with the Boogiemen256 June 1988 (1988-06-06) [9] 13 August 1990 [10]
2Spice Island Saga2513 June 1988 (1988-06-13) [11] 20 August 1990 [12]
3Here Be Dragons2520 June 1988 (1988-06-20) [13] 3 September 1990 [14]
4Dance of the Warriors2527 June 1988 (1988-06-27) [15] 10 September 1990 [16]
5East of Krakatoa254 July 1988 (1988-07-04) [17] 17 September 1990 [18]
6Beyond the Shadow Screen2511 July 1988 (1988-07-11) [19] 24 September 1990 [20]
7Dream Wanderers of Borneo2518 July 1988 (1988-07-18) [21] 10 October 1990 [22]
8Beyond the Ring of Fire-1996 (1996)-

Release

Ring of Fire aired in weekly installments from May 16, 1988 at 8 p.m. on Channels 28 and 15 as part of the PBS “Adventure” series. [23]

One result of the work was a PBS-distributed multimedia package: an oversized picture book, alongside the Emmy-nominated BBC/PBS television series titled Ring of Fire. A book of the television series was published in 1988 and republished in 2010. A digitally remastered DVD was released in 2003. In 2021, in celebration of 50 years since filming began, Ring of Fire: An Indonesian Odyssey was digitally remastered (both picture and sound) and is now available on iTunes (US, UK, AUS and CAN) [24] and Vimeo On Demand. [25] [26]

Reception

In the Los Angeles Times , Steve Weinstein called the series an "incomparable adventure teeming with thrills, chills, mystery and the bizarre". [23]

Awards

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BBC Light Programme</span> Former British national radio station (1945–1967)

The BBC Light Programme was a national radio station which broadcast chiefly mainstream light entertainment and light music from 1945 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2. It opened on 29 July 1945, taking over the long wave frequency which had earlier been used – prior to the outbreak of the Second World War on 1 September 1939 – by the BBC National Programme.

Michael Clark Rockefeller was a member of the Rockefeller family. He was the son of New York Governor and later U.S. Vice President Nelson Rockefeller, a grandson of American financier John D. Rockefeller Jr. and a great-grandson of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller Sr.

<i>Arena</i> (British TV series) British television documentary series

Arena is a British television documentary series, made and broadcast by the BBC since 1 October 1975. Voted by TV executives in Broadcast magazine as one of the top 50 most influential programmes of all time, it has produced more than six hundred episodes directed by, among others, Frederick Baker, Jana Boková, Jonathan Demme, Nigel Finch, Mary Harron, Vikram Jayanti, Vivian Kubrick, Paul Lee, Adam Low, Bernard MacMahon, James Marsh, Leslie Megahey, Volker Schlondorff, Martin Scorsese, Julien Temple, Anthony Wall, Leslie Woodhead, and Alan Yentob.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Institution Christmas Lectures</span> Annual UK Christmas scientific lecture series aimed at children, started 1825

The Royal Institution Christmas Lectures are a series of lectures on a single topic each, which have been held at the Royal Institution in London each year since 1825. The lectures present scientific subjects to a general audience, including young people, in an informative and entertaining manner. Michael Faraday conceived and initiated the Christmas Lecture series in 1825, at a time when organised education for young people was scarce. Many of the Christmas Lectures were published.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victoria Wicks</span> British actress (born 1959)

Victoria Wicks is a British actress. She is known for her role as Sally Smedley in Channel 4's comedy series Drop the Dead Donkey (1990–1998), Mrs. Gideon in The Mighty Boosh (2004), and the College Director in Skins (2007–08). Her film appearances include The Imitation Game (2014) and High-Rise (2015). She is an associate of Howard Barker's theatre company, The Wrestling School.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phyllis Logan</span> Scottish actress (born 1956)

Phyllis Logan is a Scottish actress, widely known for her roles as Lady Jane Felsham in Lovejoy (1986–1993) and Mrs Hughes in Downton Abbey (2010–2015). She won the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer for the 1983 film Another Time, Another Place. Her other film appearances include Secrets & Lies (1996), Shooting Fish (1997), Downton Abbey (2019) and Misbehaviour (2020).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruth Gemmell</span> English actress

Ruth Katrin Gemmell is an English actress. She starred in the film Fever Pitch in 1997 which was followed by supporting roles in television series EastEnders, Casualty, Home Fires and Penny Dreadful. She has played Carly Beaker, the mother of the title character in the Tracy Beaker franchise since 2004. In 2020, she began playing Violet, Dowager Viscountess Bridgerton in the Netflix series Bridgerton.

Paul Watson was a British television documentary filmmaker.

BBC Music Introducing is BBC Radio's platform supporting unsigned, undiscovered, and under-the-radar UK music talent. The backbone of that network consists of 32 BBC local radio shows on stations across England and the Channel Islands, various network shows in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, which also give artists the opportunity to be played nationally on Radio 1, Radio 1Xtra, Radio 2, Radio 3, Radio 6 Music and the Asian Network, as well as playing Introducing stages at festivals such as Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds, South by Southwest, Latitude Festival and BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tommy Knight</span> English actor (b. 1993)

Thomas Lawrence Knight, usually credited as Tommy Knight, is an English former actor best known for playing Luke Smith in The Sarah Jane Adventures and Doctor Who, Kevin Chalk in the original run of Waterloo Road, Cal Bray in Glue and Archibald Brodie in Victoria.

This is a list of British television related events from 1993.

This is a list of British television related events from 1990.

This is a list of British television related events from 1988.

This is a list of British television related events from 1986.

<i>Crimewatch</i> British television programme produced by the BBC

Crimewatch is a British television programme produced by the BBC, that reconstructs major unsolved crimes in order to gain information from the public which may assist in solving the case. The programme was originally broadcast once a month on BBC One, although in the final years before cancellation it was usually broadcast roughly once every two months.

Lawrence Blair is an English anthropologist, author, explorer and filmmaker. He is the writer, presenter and co-producer of the TV series Ring of Fire, an Emmy award nominee and winner of the 1989 National Educational Film and Video Festival Silver Apple awards. Born in England, he has been a resident of Bali, Indonesia for the past 35 years.

<i>The Travel Show</i> (TV programme) British TV series or programme

The Travel Show is an international feed of BBC News channel travel programme. The new programme launched on 27 April 2013 and has the same programme title as a 1990s holiday programme broadcast on BBC Two.

Claire Benedict is a British actress known for her work in classical productions on the British stage, but best known for portraying the principal character Mma Ramotswe in the continuing radio adaptations of The No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. She won a Time Out Award for Best Performance for her portrayal of Sophia Adams in Errol John's Moon on a Rainbow Shawl, directed by Maya Angelou. She lives in Todmorden in the Pennines.

Singing Together was a BBC Radio schools series which ran from 25 September 1939 to 29 March 2001, with repeats until 25 June 2004. Its origins were in Community Singing which was considered necessary at the outbreak of the Second World War following the mass evacuation of children.

Crimewatch File was a British television programme which reconstructed the investigation of a single case that had previously been covered by Crimewatch which viewers had previously helped to solve.

References

  1. Blair, Lawrence; Lorne Blair (1 April 1988). Ring of Fire. Bantam Books. p. 272. ISBN   978-0-553-05232-9.
  2. "Lorne Blair in Bali". Sophia Anastasia (his life partner). 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
  3. "Lorne Blair, 1945-1995: A short biography of Lorne from a brother's perspective". www.drlawrenceblair.com. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  4. "Dr Lawrence Blair - Bio". www.drlawrenceblair.com. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  5. "Adventure; Ring of Fire: Spice Island Saga". openvault.wgbh.org. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  6. "Adventure; Ring of Fire: Dance of the Warriors". openvault.wgbh.org. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  7. "Adventure; Ring of Fire: East of Krakatoa". openvault.wgbh.org. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  8. "Adventure; Ring of Fire: The Dream Wanderers of Borneo". openvault.wgbh.org. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  9. "BBC Programme Index - 1: East with the Boogiemen". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 6 June 1988. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  10. "BBC Programme Index - 1: East with the Boogiemen". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 13 August 1990. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  11. "BBC Programme Index - 2: Spice Island Saga". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 13 June 1988. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  12. "BBC Programme Index - 2: Spice Island Saga". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 20 August 1990. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  13. "BBC Programme Index - 3: Here Be Dragons". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 20 June 1988. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  14. "BBC Programme Index - 3: Here Be Dragons". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 3 September 1990. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  15. "BBC Programme Index - 4: Dance of the Warrior". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 27 June 1988. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  16. "BBC Programme Index - 4: Dance of the Warrior". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 10 September 1990. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  17. "BBC Programme Index - 5: East of Krakatoa". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 4 July 1988. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  18. "BBC Programme Index - 5: East of Krakatoa". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 17 September 1990. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  19. "BBC Programme Index - 6: Beyond the Shadow Screen". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 11 July 1988. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  20. "BBC Programme Index - 6: Beyond the Shadow Screen". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 24 September 1990. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  21. "BBC Programme Index - 7: Dream Wanderers of Borneo". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 18 July 1988. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  22. "BBC Programme Index - 7: Dream Wanderers of Borneo". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 10 October 1990. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  23. 1 2 Weinstein, Steve (14 May 1988). "Adventurers in the 'Ring of Fire'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  24. "Ring of Fire: An Indonesian Odyssey - Apple TV". Apple TV. 27 May 2021. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  25. STUDIOS, SAVEARTH (13 December 2022), Watch Ring of Fire: An Indonesian Odyssey Online | Vimeo On Demand , retrieved 14 March 2024
  26. Team, NOW Bali Editorial (25 June 2021). "Fantastic Documentaries 'Bali: Island of the Dogs' and 'Ring of Fire' Now Available on iTunes". NOW! Bali. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  27. Team, Qraved (1 July 2013). "Meet Lawrence Blair". Indonesia Expat. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  28. "Ring of fire : an Indonesian odyssey / directed by Lorne Blair ; written by Lawrence Blair ; edited by... - Catalogue | National Library of Australia". catalogue.nla.gov.au. Retrieved 14 March 2024.