ADAPA FILMS

Adapa Films aims to bridge the ancient and modern worlds by creating a video archive of re-enacted stories and myths from the ancient world. Utilizing the languages of these most ancient texts, live actors, computer imagery, as well as reconstructed ancient musical scores, Adapa introduces the viewer to seldom heard stories and beliefs and provides a unique window into the mindset of our most distant ancestors.

Perhaps the most unique aspect of Adapa Films is the producers' talent for telling the ancient Near Eastern stories in their original language. Combining knowledge of ancient Near Eastern languages and history, Adapa Films furnishes the finest in scholarly entertainment.

 

Now on DVD

The Epic of Gilgamesh: Tablet XI

An All-Digital Production!

Based closely upon the eleventh tablet of the Akkadian Epic of Gilgamesh (c. 2000-1800 BCE), this captivating story captures the haunting words of the Babylonian Noah, Utnapishtim, to the famous king of Uruk, Gilgamesh. Listen to Utnapishtim as he tells the story of how he was spared from the gods' impending catastrophe. The producer deluges your screen with a host of stirring images using live and computer imagery. The format follows the previous Adapa title, "The Descent of Ishtar" (see below), in providing the actual Akkadian tongue along with English subtitles. A wonderful teaching tool for scholars of Bible, Religion, and the ancient Near East, this video will inform and entertain scholars and non-scholars alike.

Purchase Information

VHS, NTSC $30.00
SVHS, PAL or SECAM $30.00
DVD, NTSC $30.00

 

Price includes shipping - please specify format. Express shipping is available upon request. Allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Checks should me made payable to Scott Noegel.

For more information, contact:
Prof. Scott Noegel
Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilization
Box 353120
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195

scott@offlinenetworks.com

 

Now on DVD

The Descent of Ishtar

The Descent of Ishtar is an artistic recreation of the ancient Babylonian poetic myth of the goddess Ishtar (c. 1800 BCE). In the myth, Ishtar, the goddess of love and war, descends to the Netherworld where she must pass through seven gates and experience a number of transformations before entering the realm of the dead and meeting Ereshkigal, queen of the perished. Her departure from the land of the living signals massive earthly devastation: crops wither, sterility plagues both humans and animals, and pestilence wreak havoc on the land and on its people. Eventually Ishtar cuts short her stay in the abysmal abode through a ruse by which she is allowed to leave, again through the seven gates. Her revenance enlivens the earth with people, peace, and plenty.

The video's soundtrack employs the actual Babylonian tongue, for which English subtitles are provided, and contemporary adaptations of a three thousand year old Hurrian cultic musical score discovered at Ugarit (modern day Ras Shamra in Syria). The lulling verve of the ancient Babylonian language, the video's attention to the realia of the period, and the mood-setting musical score combine to revive Ishtar's story for the first time in nearly four thousand years.

Purchase Information

VHS, NTSC $30.00
SVHS, PAL or SECAM $30.00
DVD, NTSC $30.00

 

Price includes shipping - please specify format. Express shipping is available upon request. Allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Checks should me made payable to Scott Noegel.

For more information, contact:
Prof. Scott Noegel
Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilization
Box 353120
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195

scott@offlinenetworks.com

 

Commendations

"...recommended for broader history and language academic collections."

R. Pitman,
Video Librarian

"An impressive piece of work. Noegel has succeeded in restoring to life one of the most important Mesopotamian myths not only in form but also in substance. The combination of picture, voice, and text -- the myth is recited in original Akkadian with English subtitles -- manages to evoke in the audience feelings that a mere reading of the text could never convey.

I find this video both scientifically accurate and captivating and can recommend it as an excellent means of promoting the culture of ancient Mesopotamia to scholars and laymen alike."

Simo Parpola,
Professor of Asian & African Studies,
Neo-Assyrian Text Corpus Project

"The video dramatization of the Descent of Ishtar provides an important new medium for text presentation. The visual effects, coupled with the spoken Akkadian, enliven this widely read Babylonian tale. Teachers and students alike should find this video a welcome addition to the often dry classroom experience."

David I. Owen
Professor of Ancient Near Eastern and Biblical History and Archaeology,
Cornell University

"Accurately captures the spirit of the original: today's celluloid rings true to yesterday's clay!"

Alasdair Livingstone
University Lecturer in Near Eastern Studies,
University of Birmingham