The Linguists is an independent 2008 American documentary film produced by Ironbound Films about language extinction and language documentation. It follows two linguists, Dr. Gregory D. S. Anderson and Dr. K. David Harrison, as they travel around the world to collect recordings of some of the last speakers of three endangered languages: Chulym in Siberia; Sora in Orissa, India; and Kallawaya in Bolivia.
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MEDIA COVERAGE
“At Sundance: Documentaries Take the Day”
–Emily Poenischt, Vanity Fair
“The excitement of these two professors proves contagious, and as the film reveals how cultural shame and colonialism have factored in the loss of these languages, their incredible dedication becomes all the more compelling.”
“Small town, big influence”
– Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
“..The Linguists, a fascinating journey with two men who are the Indiana Joneses of language hunters, academics who go to obscure corners of the globe to find and preserve disappearing languages.”
“Linguists the talk of the town at Sundance”
-Kirk Honeycutt, Reuters
“Indiana Jones’ spirit certainly infects the intrepid heroes of The Linguists. These are bold academics who plunge into the jungles and backwater villages of the world to rescue living tongues about to go extinct…”
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