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In “Congo Tales,” a new book about the second-largest tropical forest in the world, the story of a people and their home comes alive. -New York Times Book Review

Tales Of Us is an ongoing multimedia series that offers a new approach to communicating the urgency of protecting the world’s most powerful and fragile ecosystems and the people who call them home.

Congo Tales (Random House / Prestel, November 15^th, 2018) and the short film The Little Fish and the Crocodile are its first two such projects.

Upturning the traditional conventions of fear-based environmental messaging about conserving areas that have become critical to global environmental health, Tales of Us tells their stories and the stories of the people who live there in a totally new way.

Staging the local mythologies, legends and lore that form the basis of cultures that predate modern civilization by centuries or more in the natural – and ecologically critical — environments from which they sprang, and photographing them using the world’s most celebrated portrait photographers, Tales of Us communicates the magic and mystery of these little understood places in a way that empowers and uplifts, and that reaches people in other parts of the world who may otherwise not hear the message.

Tales of Us sets out to change what has become a single story about places of great environmental import, and shows that there are in fact many stories around both.

The result is a cross-cultural and cross-continental collaboration between the people who live in often besieged areas of ecological importance, and a global audience of people whose decisions affect both, that is intended to prevent the loss of these all-important bastions of nature, and reveal their priceless value to the world and our communal future in it.

The Book

A stunning new visual book tells stories of the Congo and its people through lush and imaginative photography.
– The New York Times Book Review

Deep inside the second largest rainforest in the world, the village of Mbomo is inhabited by a diverse group of cultures. After surviving years of devastating Ebola epidemics, the “Mbomoians” now live in a peaceful coexistence. While many ‘stories from the forest’ can be found here, most of them have never before been told.

Offering a fresh yet intimate view of life inside this ecologically rich basin, the Congo Tales photo book joins a deeply moving traditional narrative through the eyes of its community with cinemographic illustration. Although years of research have gone into creating the final result of this series, the images themselves are anything but contrived.

Mainly focusing on children in their most natural form, this book provides powerful imagery of play, translating the importance of nature and conservation.

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“When an old person passes away, a library of knowledge burns.”
– Sanza Mobimba Teacher

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Congo Tales Christie’s Auction

After several months of planning and preparation we were thrilled to hold the Congo Tales auction at the Barberini Museum in Potsdam. It was important to us that our auction, filled with a selection of artist proof photographs from our original exhibition, was curated with the same care we have put into the project every […]

Congo’s Tales Told To Chelsea at Rizzoli Book Store

The spell of the single story about the Congo, its rainforest and its people, was broken on November 15th, 2018, at the launch for Congo Tales (Random House / Prestel) at New York’s iconic Rizzoli Books. A freak November blizzard descended on the city that morning, interrupting what had been an unseasonably warm New York […]

Congo Tales Soundscape: An Interview with David Kamp

Over the last several years, the Congo Tales project has traveled deep into the rainforest over and over. We were committed to experiencing this amazing place in an authentic way, but it was also our goal to bring the experience back to people who would never be able to make the trip; the warmth, […]

Congo Basin film winner eligible for oscars

“The Little Fish and the Crocodile” Wins two awards!

Our project’s short film, the Little Fish and the Crocodile, has not only enjoyed a fantastic four month exhibition at the Museum Barberini in Potsdam as part of the Congo Tales exhibition, it also recently began it’s festival tour around the globe! Here is a list of the festivals we have been a part of […]

Tartaruga Feliz in the Congo Basin with Tales of Us

Childhood Development & the Importance of Play: An Interview with Tartaruga Feliz

They say “it takes a village to raise a child.” In keeping with our ongoing commitment to impact producing, while bringing to birth such a multifaceted ‘child’ as the Congo Tales project, we needed many allies, guides and support along the way. To uncover and develop native stories through the eyes of children deep in […]

Cultural awareness exhibition Congo Tales

Introducing Congo Tales to Europe: the Barberini Exhibition

After over four years of development, of planning, travelling, learning and growing, after building trust and collecting experiences and stories within the community of Mbomo, it finally happened. A process that took our team deep into the rich expanse of the Odzala-Kokoua park had finally unfolded itself to become a little library of tales from […]

Creative storytelling in the Congo Basin

The World Premier of Congo Tales in Brazzaville

On the 22ndof May, 2018, in the family home of the N’Sondé’s, located in a charming neighborhood of Brazzaville, we opened the world premier of ‘Congo Tales’. It was a warm afternoon and everybody gathered under the shade of the large mango tree located in the family houses garden. Charming woven colored mats were spread […]

Glass Prints and the Congo Basin

One of the core commitments in Impact Producing is giving back to the community. We spend a lot of time on this part, trying to ensure that our productions are not only dynamic context and…

The core concerns of impact productions are cultural sensitivity, sustainability and positive regional effect.

We are committed to the contribution of positive change in the communities where our projects take place. Instead of imposing our own cultural standards, we work to carry the philosophy of true impact productions. We endeavor to learn from the deep truth of diverse narratives so we can unite cultures and leave programs behind for future generations. For this reason, we take special steps to ensure our team members operate in a socially aware and ethically coherent way.

Considering the individuality of local structures and cultural features

Strategically using the materials that are regularly available to locals

Employing community members to maintain cultural depth and richness

Improving quality of life for communities by encouraging creative thinking

Training support and feedback opportunities for continuous improvement

Creating platforms for untold narratives to be told in authentic ways and settings

Our Team

Stefanie Plattner
co-founder Tales of Us

Eva Vonk
co-founder Tales of Us

Kovo N'sonde
Story Adaptation

Pieter Henket
Photographer Congo Tales

Bosco Ekany
Line Producer Congo Tales

Ani and Mouendet Ideme
researchers Congo Tales

Vulgain Imboda
Educator

David Kamp
Sound Design Congo Tales

Aichato Ibembe
researcher Congo Tales

Tartaruga Feliz
Character design workshops Tales of Us / Congo Tales

Taina de Oliveira Lagoeiro, Producer Congo Tales

Taina de Oliveira Lagoeiro
Producer Tales of Us

Roger Innis
Producer Congo Tales

Karen Hoffstetter
Branding Tales of Us

Anne Wollney
Production Assistant Tales of Us

Shaleah Dawnyel, Content copy editor, Tales of Us

Shaleah Dawnyel
Communication & Strategy

Steve Amigo
Teacher, Congo Tales

Said Abitar
Art director Congo Tales

Carolina D’auria
project advisor Congo Tales

Wilfried N’sonde
literature adaptation support, Congo Tales

Theophane Bokaka
Story Research, Congo Tales

Auguste Miabeto
Liguist, Congo Tales

Get in
Touch

For media inquiries contact:

Christopher Nutter / Nutter Media

christopher@nuttermedia.com / 917.770.0350

For all other inquiries use:

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we go next?

Tales of Us is an ongoing cultural awareness project committed to immortalizing the hidden stories of the world. You can help us by suggesting a place or becoming a partner and collaborator for future projects. Suggest our next location in the blank below and help us to unite cultures!