Thanks so much for watching! This video was a massive collaboration over the course of several months, and there was so much material we couldn’t fit into the final piece. For an extended look at the interviews with the people living in and around the mountain, check out this bonus video: th-cam.com/video/YIOon-drZhE/w-d-xo.html
We loved to shoot this episode ❤ Immense gratitude goes to @Vox for not only amplifying the voices of the resilient people of Ambohiby but also providing them with the means to tell their extraordinary story. It's an honor to witness their greatness and courage, deserving the spotlight and attention they've received. Moreover, the opportunity granted to name Anosibe properly stands as a testament to the significance of their culture and heritage. Through this act, their narrative gains even more depth, resonating powerfully with the world and ensuring their legacy endures with its rightful name. From Madagascar with love ❤
You and your team did such a fantastic job and your videographer Rado really captured it in a way that made me fall in love with the place and people. Sending you all so much love!
Thanks so much for your kind words. We're so happy that @Vox granted us with the chance to share a piece of our land with us, taking you to a perspective which is different from lemurs and baobabs (even if yes, all of this is super lovely)... From Madagascar with love 💕
I would like to thank VOX for having contacted us to carry out the descent and filming on Ambohiby. It wasn't an easy task, especially for me as a fixer, but with good preparation and the right team, the result speaks for itself. Thanks also to Lalie Rabeharison for the collaboration. Looking forward to the next project.
Incredible work! I love seeing things like this. I only hope that this doesn't bring the people the wrong kind of attention and that they get to keep living there in peace, with their space.
Hm........ precautions could be taken to prevent foreign and regional meddling in this community's incredible livelihood and unique surrounding geology.
@@Ingrafre I suspect that the background music is what makes people like these so much. Music is that powerful. And people are that susceptible. It just works!
How so? They didn't really do anything creative. While quite possibly ruining that place via their exploitation. The people who live there need to know they have every right to keep everyone else out. All the while growing their population and improving their road.
The people who came from somewhere else have a right to keep others out? You are deluded. People have the right to move just as they did, and exploration isn't "ruining" anything. Your comment is what deserves an award.@@cjackfly
Their lives would benefit from a road but a road would change the dynamic completely. Maybe they are very lucky in this sad time on this planet to just stay with their peace and safety and love. Bless them!❤
I believe the distance to get there equals it out so a road is really needed and again they could grow fields of citrus trees around them as defence. I also don’t believe they are scared of more people since they settled to farm. I’m African and you guys are reaching
@@Glenn-m1tno always… the fact that they were treated as ‘spies’ when they first got there means there is something they are doing that is illegal and they know it is which is why they didn’t want them there. They aren’t like the sentanlises, they know of modern technology and use it. They are remote, but not such that they are uncontactable. Something… is off…
As a malagasy, I can’t express how grateful I am for this amazing piece of work; respectful, thoroughly researched, beautifully filmed, written and edited. I rarely get to come across such high quality content about my country by accident and I can say without exaggeration that all of the effort put into this video sincerely touches me. Thank you!
I bet if that village sets up an online crowdfund, they can get engineers to dig a car tunnel through the mountain to make the trip to the village easier.
This is the kind of investigative journalism we so rarely see anymore amidst social media and the 24 hour news cycle. It took you literally months to put this story together, all arising from one moment of curiosity, and every second of the result was worth it. More of this, please.
@@rodneychan914 Yeah. Not to mention that it's not like there's a highway leading there. The dirt road is almost inexistent, with rough terrain and a strong rainy season it must be almost impossible get there without a car
This is all very silly. Anyone can see why people would settle there - it's protected and it has water. This is elementary... how is this so amazing to everyone?
I gotta say, I love this sort of reporting style. Instead of having a pre planned narrative, it starts with a hook, something to get you curious, then just goes through the entire thought and research process, keeping you curious, making it easy to understand where the information is coming from while also being super transparent about the research method. Great stuff as always.
@@leviandhiro3596Bro, did you think reaching out to different local experts after collating infos from google is easy? On top of that, they paid a local team to personally check the site twice.
@@leviandhiro3596Definitely not ! I can guarrantee you that stuff like this takes time, and cost some money too. It's not just about googling for free as you think.
What an amazing community! When I was a kid, I love to read about pioneer stories, and these people are real pioneers. They were looking for a better life and room and a place where their hard work would matter and they found it. I think that’s so amazing. Beautiful people and a beautiful place.
What an amazing story and incredible journalism. Hats off to Christophe and everyone involved in the production of this video. I found myself tearing up when the village elder talked about how proud he was of his produce. Hopefully, they can get some better roads to the area soon.
They'd have to make them themselves. It reminds me of the movie _Big Fish_ where this town out in the middle of nowhere finally got its streets paved, and connected to outside roads, but then they had to pay taxes and its quality went down.
They escaped frenzy but the day they'll have a decent road, problems will come along like they always do. Vox I appreciate most of your work but this time I'm not sure you're doing those villagers a favor...
right, i think that they know they don't need roads. They seem to have one of the most peaceful places on the plant and roads could ruin that. They didn't seem very upset about the journey to sell crop, just stated it was in fact a difficult journey. I think they only sell the cash crops for the necessities.@@sandal_thong8631
@@lorenzoblum868absolutely, outsiders will know there's a land like this, move there, or even steal their land. Vox should've left them alone, untouched.
As a geographer I can tell you this video is absolutely incredible. What you did is something a geographer would love to do, the extensive research on aiming to a group of people and trying to understand why they ended up there in such a unique place is something very few would do. I'm glad your curiosity and vox let you do it. Kudos to the entire team and greetings to those friends in Anosibe Ambohiby.
A fascinating piece of exploration. What we get to see here is essentially the same thing that would have happened sometimes in the American Old West, in medieval Europe, in early China or in 17th/19th century Siberia, but it's very rarely documented in pictures and with the actual words and stories of the settlers themselves.
@@louise_rose Absolutely. To think that in this age you just go somewhere and get some land that nobody wanted yet, it is really incredible. I imagined that everywhere every square meter of land is cartographed and belongs to someone or some authority. Or maybe they bought the rights from local authorities. Coincidence or not, just the other day I watched again the story of those malagasi kidnapped by slavers two centuries ago, and marooned for decades in the middle of the ocean on a sand bar.
As a Malagasy, I used to live in Tsiroanomandidy for 10 years but never heared a story about this place. So i'm so grateful that you make a video about it, thanks for all your intersest. Big thanks too for Lalie's Team who makes this experience possible. I'm so proud to live in this beautiful country, full of diversity and full of nice people♥️
I am visiting your country at the moment from South Africa, and I have to say, it is so beautiful and the people are friendly and kind. I'm falling in love with Madagascar
Yeah except they didn't do it because they don't like pepole but because they needed land to farm , this dosen't hurt them and the research vox did here genuatley benefited the world.
and someone exposing where you moved and the government now more likely to kick you off the land so someone can make a few dollars for a youtube video ..........
Agreed. Even though they might benefit from the exposure what comes with it will no doubt be the basis of why they migrated there to begin with. All of the trappings that being noticed brings.
@@M0MENTuM. I mean look at the hours of effort that went into the video. If it was financially fruitless, people wouldn't/wouldn't be able to make such videos.
One of the most touching pieces I have seen this year. It is like a whole investigation behind one of those random questions you ask yourself at 2am on a work night while mindlessly roaming through the internet. This is the dream of every geography nerd that just likes to browse through Google Maps. Congratulations to Vox and the whole Malagasy team on the ground, really a beautiful story.
Touching? They found a group of hiding criminals. These criminal towns are always found in remote areas. Alaska is full of them. The Amazon is full of them. People that have messed up their lives too completely to live in society, so they started their own. These towns are invariably filled with crime and murder. As their residents are criminals and killers. That's why they thought the film crew was spies.
I wonder how many little quiet secretive villages and tribal retreats will be spoiled by people with nothing much else to do than surf around the planet with Google Earth and then investigate.
It still makes me happy to know people can still do this. Just decide we want to go somewhere else for better. And not have to file tons of paperwork or get permission from any government just go and live. Thats beautiful
I am from Madagascar. And THANK YOU. This video brought me to tears. Thank you for taking months to do in-depth research about this remote space in a remote and largely unknown country like Madagascar. The realization and the storytelling are mesmerizing. Misaotra !
Can we just talk about how incredible the team that got there is? Not only did they get there, they got incredible footage, interviews, amazing cinematic shots... really amazing!
I'm glad you guys went on to do this documentary. It's amazing how the Internet connects people but honestly, it gives me relief when you found out the name of the crater and the village. I just hope that by shining a light onto this community won't put them in any danger but instead create a better infrastructure without damaging the area.
My point about wishing they had been left alone - life's pretty rough in Madagascar so my hope is that they are not joined by others especially as they are a minority. Let's not even think about corporations and corruption
im betting my left nut that since this docu is out, some marketing experts contacting travel agencies and developers thinking how could they push out the village build a hotel and charge semi rich firstworlders tons of cash. thanks vox.
@@LittlewingsTravelsyeah, we all know minorities are incapable of deception and corruption. Just ‘pure’ native. If this happened in eastern Washington the very act of planting orange trees would break laws on ‘conservation’ of the land
i LOVE this series of "so we were on google maps just looking around and found something we couldn't answer. Here's how we satisfied our curiosity." I don't care if it's just half an hour of showing how you googled well or if it's "so we had to get someone to go there and spend a bunch of money getting an answer" this is peak human curiosity on display and it's a sentiment i can only adore and respect. please don't ever stop this series!
@@patrickmorgan3840they did! i think they have made similar video like this with mysterious circular pattern in the middle of Sahara you can look it up
I hope and pray that no one causes trouble for these beautiful villagers after this documentary because it looks like not a lot of people knew about their existence. I pray that they continue living in this beautiful secret haven without any interference from the outside world.
But they are not cutting themselves off from the world. They are growing cash crops of citrus and would like a decent road to take their produce to market. Nobody is going to brave that road lightly, so I think they are pretty safe.
That moment you changed the village name from “Crater Village” to “Anosibe Ambohiby” really moved me for some reason. It’s like they showed us how isolated people on this world really can be! Amazing video and the guy who took all of those clips in Madagascar, I applaud and appreciate you!
Right after this video began, the "crater" looked familiar. There is one almost identical to it which is far less remote, and is in South Africa. During the apartheid era it was located in a Bantustan close to Pretoria and Johannesburg. The resort of Sun City was built there, and a large portion of its crater is a national park.
@@thomaskirkpatrick3870 Not the point of my comment Tom💀😬. Just commenting how even though a high majority of people may not know of a place, doesn’t mean it doesn’t mean it’s not known to some people. It’s called “Experience beauty”.
@@thomaskirkpatrick3870 I really wonder how many tourists would want to make the rough trip from the nearest city to the crater. multiple hours of travel on rough roads isn't something many would do willingly.
You probably won't see this but I found this video to be extremely well-made and I really appreciated you interviewing a mix of local experts and international experts. This was a beautifully-made video starting from scratch and I learned a lot about geology, as a physicist. This made me realize how big the international research scene was that researchers in such small towns did their master's thesis on such particular details. Thank you!
@@Alan_Alien Well yeah you have to pay your internet provider, but it is literally Pennies for an entire documentary (Atleast in India where 50 mbps quality internet is cheap)
You’re hilarious. They made a super long video explaining that people use volcanic grounds in a logical (not very remote at all) way for farming. They made it seem super special but its not that special at all. Its a very normal and way of life in Madagascar.
This video is both a great research and such a massive intrusive/stalkerish project... As an archaeologist, I was carrying similar thoughts over the last two weeks, working on an ancient Iron Age farming site with two round houses. I was thinking about the people, what they would have felt, what would have guided them to this land. But this video also reminded me how obsessive the creation of content is today, and how no stone can be left unturned, even when it means bothering people who are already afraid of being spied upon, yet filming them and uploading footages on TH-cam to make money and engagement. What a strange world we live in.
I suppose the agreement of shooting and interviewing the head of those residents do shows their attitudes of welcoming for ppl to have a better understanding of all these things? I mean if they're worried about the situation you claimed, they could have refused their interviewing, but they didn't.
As a PhD student, I sometimes get lost in why we do research and what our missions are. You hit a best-ever example that reminds me to explore every corner of the world with a sharp mind like yours❤
What an extraordinary mini documentary. This was expertly put together, engaging and informative without relying on tick box journalism or catch phrases and weak references from google just to cover laziness or poor research. I have not been so engaged in a topic for a long time. As someone else in the comments said, this deserves awards. Journalism en-large should take cues from this and learn. Bravo, well done!!
20:55 something special at this moment, the music, the sight of what creative and constructive humans can do. The finest of nature and humans living together!
I think this may be my favorite Vox video ever. The mystery, the journey, the research, the beautiful landscapes, the Russian attack on titan landmarks, it’s all amazing
I found this video so therapeutic. Growing up, when my friends and I were bored, we would just scroll across google earth and send each other screenshots of weird or strange places wondering what they were. We could never go there, but I still do it from time to time saying up too late on the computer or my phone. To actually see someone do a little adventure like this off of the same idea really got to me. I hope this is a series. This was so cool.
I lived in Madagascar for two years a while back. Never anywhere this isolated - I was mostly in Antananarivo and Toamasina. I learned Malagasy and made some incredible friends. It was amazing getting to relive some experiences, and I was eagerly waiting for the point in the video where the malagasy interviews would happen. A lot of commenters have expressed concern about the villagers being in a different ethnic region, so I'd like to give a little clarification: There is some ethnic tension on Madagascar, and definitely racism between the tribes, but intermingling is incredibly common, and the Betsileo tend to have good relations in places they move to. Most conflict comes when people are packed too close and are competing for reaources, and the Nosibe settlers are isolated enough to prevent that from being an issue. I would love to see as many of the interviews as possible, and hope Vox makes more of their recordings available!
When people are packed to close together and competing for resources. Forced integration is just as bad as forced segregation. You wonder why the western government leaders are so obsessed with forced integration? It’s like they want people to go at each other or something. Maybe they think we will be so consumed with that we won’t notice or care what they are doing? Sadly they are correct for most people but I think and hope there is enough people that see past their side show and are watching what they are doing to ALL of us.
These are some of my favourite videos at Vox. They identify interesting places where not much is known about it then they make it known. Chistophe and everyone person who helped like Laile deserve such a big applause. I wish the town well. Great video keep it up.
The ending there actually made me shed a few tears. That was so beautifully concluded. We may be able to gain everything there is online, but nothing beats actually going out there, talking to people and being more present in life, even if it means going slightly out of your comfort zone. Amazing video, amazing story, and as usual, amazing research done by the team!
@@sykn5422 I think more trekking will happen there since its famous now. But I hope they could use this for transporting their goods etc. And its also essential to find what is going on there.
As long as no one’s forcibly resettling them or taking control of them, having people travel back and forth to their locations is a good thing. It’ll encourage trade, and build a road for them - something they’ve actually wanted.
For those wondering about the Attack on Titan references *spoilers* and why Madagascar, the series mainly involves a group of people who live in a three tiered walled society that we later learn is built on and island. Later on maps are shown of the world and the map looks like a normal map of earth flipped upside down. In this upside-down map, we learn that the island where most of the story takes place happens on this Madagascar-parallel of an island.
this episode made me tear up, it's so cool to see a village in the middle of nowhere. absolutely love it! thank you vox and the researchers, geologists, film makers, etc for making this possible.
This whole video needs to win awards. This is amazing journalism. Job well done Christophe, Lalie, and the whole team behind this. I hope you go win the awards you deserve.
Fr, I think that the distinction between “video essay” and “documentary” is largely a matter of where it’s available - this would sure be one if it was on Netflix or what have you
Luckily, this is still far away from anything, in Madagascar which is a very remote place, only known by people that got or lived here. As far as I know, South African moguls are interested in Madagascar, no one else.
My thoughts also. Horrible to be sceptical, but we know how the greedy people of the world behave. Once 'they' see a potential for profit or something else they can gain or steal from the peaceful people there, then they stand to lose their paradise. No wonder, they were sceptical about allowing anyone in, especially with cameras. It was a great video, and much work went into creating and presenting it, for sure, but my concerns are for that lovely little village. They don't seem to have any protection from 'outsiders'. I hope someone can return there in a years' time maybe and see how they are doing. It would be great if someone could help them out with transport and make their lives easier, without trying to steal their glory. Thank you for this short documentary. Lovely to see 'survivors'.
I hope that they remain safe, and don't lose the space they struggled to find. This was an incredible journey. The film crew did an amazing job reaching the destination and some great film work. Thank you for sharing this story.
Yes I agree that revealing a clan to the wider world definitely has its risks. There are a great many cases of tribes and small groups of people suffering from external Busy Body's.
Exactly the problem with Western people, they don't even consider for one second the way their content on this huge platform will effect these people's lives.
I am afraid this would only lead to more land claims in Madagascar when rich & educated people of Madagascar will see that you can claim free land in the countryside. Soon it will lead to loss of free or wild land in the country.
@@terrymunoztrujillo483they will be safe. It's so remote that no tourists are ever going to get there. There is also nothing for the tourists to do there.
I love how you are telling a story at the same time showing to us the thorough and journalism behind it! My favorite video so far in this Channel!!!! Love to see more of this
This was an incredible story and I understand why the villagers might have had concerns talking to the team. They might be worried about more attention on them. They might not have any legal ownership over the land and could be worried about more people or the government looking into them. I hope that is not the case and they continue to live their peaceful life. Another things that amazes me is, the likeliness of this migration to how the humans ended up populating every corner of this world.
Yes, exactly makes me think the same thing. So much can develope in only 15 years, imagine a few hundred. And how many human settlements like this have come and gone over the millenia? Must be countless.
@@KenDotComHahahahaha I wouldn’t say it’s xenophobic, but I definitely would say it’s provocative. Sometimes you don’t have to think ‘Why can’t I?’, but have to think ‘Is it ethical’. There are standards and values, you know?
This is by far the best episode I've watched from Vox throughout the years, I just clicked this episode out of curiosity but I never thought that it will end with a remarkable place in my heart & mind. Thanks to Vox's team & Lalie's team, you guys deserved the best!
Thank you Vox for not only showing me the mystery, but helping to solve it and then showing us who these people are. What a fascinating journey these people made, and there they are in all their magnificent isolation. Though not really anymore because now we all know about them.
Truly one of the best videos on this platform. Please, please continue doing stuff like this. It is unbelievably fascinating. Props to the entire team for all the hard work.
Just wanted to point out how amazing it is that at this day and age a video like this, 24 minutes long, deep in research, talking to specialists and discovering something has gathered so many views. In a world of fast shorts and deep misinformation, you've managed to produce a great informative work. Congratulations Christophe, Lalie and everyone at Vox! ❤
It easily could’ve been a short. There was no story here at all. They repeated everything. In the end it was a very common and logical way of life in that part of the world. Also they made it seem very rural and special but its no different than 60 percent of Madagascar. Its funny how easily you believe everything you see on youtube.
Sí muy lindo todo pero no me dijo lo que realmente formó todo esas cosas fue la luna para que sepa la Luna a hecho cosas impresionantes la tierra y ojo del Sahara lo hizo la Luna cuando se fue alejándose de la tierra círculos concéntricos cayeron bueno espero que lo entienda y cualquier cosa me llaman y se los explico
This story was absolutely WONDERFUL but I can't help to wonder about the potential negative impact this exposure will have on the village and it's resources. Hopefully, the impact is only good for as long as possible. 🤞 Amazing journalism as always!
It is amazing that we have some spaces like this. Your country is beautiful, & like many, I hear there's much good & bad....c'est la vie, eh! Even in London, where I've been many years, I still find some places that I had no clue about. Not as fantastic as this spot, but still interesting. I shall think of you out there on that island & I wish you all the best : D
This is absolutely amazing. Well done on the production on this one, and massive props to Andriamanisa for the incredible footage, and of course everyone else on the team
That's the thing I appreciate most about this brilliant piece of work - it wasn't a TH-camr going to the place and giving us their opinions, they paid a local crew to do the interviews and show us this community. That's how it should be done.
also their documentary shots were filmed really good! i wish someone paid them to explore around places like this more often in madagascar so we can see more of things like this!
@@gordon1545 Wow, now that you mentioned it, almost got past me. It's the proper way! It wasn't Vox sending their people, they hired locals which are way better than even Vox themselves.
YES! You made another one! I've been praying for another one since your weird spots in the desert video and this just blew me away. Fantastic job to the team who went on this discovery and Chris for job well done. I love that you funded locals into doing this rather than hiring an american team. Someone please tell Lalie that she and her team did an amazing job and also to Rado, a huge thank you for showing us this in such a breathtaking way.
I stumbled across this completely randomly, but it's one of the most compelling human stories I've ever found on TH-cam. You did an amazing job on research and the production is first class. Quite well shot and edited. Bravo. I look forward to more of your work.
I too stumbled on it. A very good story. The power of the internet, however a double edged sword. Now a lot of people know about this place, I hope it brings them more prosperity. A better road perhaps. Steve USA
If you enjoyed the story centered around this village you should try the channel Rare Earth, it is in the same vein, and has stories from all over the world.
This is definitely one of the more interesting videos that I've seen on TH-cam lately. You would never expect people to be living in Madagascar out of nowhere. What happened to civilizations and new cultures is going to be an interesting factoid that we run into as we grow as a species
You might not but plenty of people who were perhaps educated in a different country/society would be. Everything is unique and amazing when you have grown up and lived your life in yee haww 'murica.
Wow, you nailed it! As a fellow Malagasy, I'm stoked that you've given our local talent a chance to shine in these breathtaking scenes. I can only imagine the hustle and bustle backstage - thank you so much for your time and effort in bringing this masterpiece to reality! We could certainly do with more videos like this! Ones that highlight the good things in life instead of the usual gloom and political drama. Misaotra!
I was also happy to hear from the Malagasy scientists and guides. Near the beginning of the video I was thinking "Please tell me you didn't send a crew of white folks to check up on what the local people were up to." I'm glad they didn't go that route.
This is so wonderful! YOU TOOK US THERE. Amazing research, amazing footage, amazing people. This is just so incredibly made. You literally put them in the map. This piece deserves an Oscar. SOOOOO MUCH LOVE TO THIS CRAFT.
Hope the villagers don't face any negative consequences due to this video. Surprisingly, this has not been addressed in the video. And at the time of writing (9 hours after the upload), none of the top comments are expressing any concern about this. Just to be clear, there are a ton of negative consequences that could arise from this. The worst is they might get thrown out of that land because they don't own it.
considering how difficult it is to get there. I doubt much efforts would be made to kick them out especially if there isn't anything to gain from it. Sure maybe the government would express their concerns, but to make actual efforts to kick them out requires far too much effort and money.
I'm gonna cry. As a geology student and a huge fan of Vox videos involving sociocultural topics, I gotta say I was geeking out throughout the whole video. This video deserves an award and the whole community and the team behind this video deserves to know how highly appreciated their involvement in this venture is. God bless!
Excellent production! At first, I was skeptical, but the more I watched, the more spellbound I got! Supersubstantial timeline data research! Easy to follow and understand!
@@sendthis9480this is actually the way to provide insight on a remote community, you ask permission, and you let them speak for themselves, that’s cultural relativism and should be applauded and showcased as a good example. WE NEED more journalism that respects cultures and lets them tell their own story.
humans really do be like that though. most of our closed-off-ness comes from not knowing whether someone wishes to harm us or not. which is fair enough.
A hundred years from now they will probably wish they never let anyone in. I can see why they may want to though because they seem to need help with roads, etc. I just hope they don’t end up like the Native Americans
A road would make their paradise more easily accessible, but also corrupted by the same conditions they fled. This was a beautiful story. I hope they can find a balance that will keep their peace, and make them more prosperous.
What a fantastic piece with superb Vox-level production values! I am a geologist and lived in Madagascar in 1984-85, the island and its people are beautifully unique and very friendly. Your combination of a Google Earth mystery investigation, accurate plate tectonic geology, remarkable alkali mantle plume remnants and your obvious love of a good story makes for a great piece. Thanks for the fun.
Have you seen Nick Zentner's geology videos on TH-cam? He's a geology professor at CWU in Washington, talking about the ice age floods and lots of other really interesting stuff, including video of many of his lectures and visiting sites in the field.
Brava! This is the kind of story I crave. Thank you everyone involved for bringing this us, and broadening each of our tiny lives! - & my deep respect to those who took on the arduous trek. I’ll be smiling for the rest of the day. ❤
I usually do not comment on videos but great story Christopher. I am amazed at your efforts hiring local people to do part of your reporting instead of you traveling there as amazing that could have been. I have never thought about ethical reporting in this sense and this is a push to make sure talent is seen, as well as local degrees (such as the masters thesis student that had journeys to the crater) help can provide in narrating these touching stories. Great job
@sergiomares9952 Yes we're incredibly grateful to Christophe and the exceptional team at Vox for their trust and for providing us with this invaluable opportunity. Sending a local crew to produce the show in our community isn't a common occurrence, making this trust even more significant to us. It's through their belief in us that Johary, our fellow compatriot and a skilled Hydrologist who grew up amidst those majestic mountains, could share their expertise. This unique chance not only honors our community's knowledge but also amplifies Johary's insights, enriching the understanding of our region's unique hydrology and heritage.
As a Nigerian, my heart melted seeing Nigeria just above Madagascar on the list for countries with disastrous road networks. Nigeria really is in need of a robust leader. This is actually one of the best documentary ever from Vox. I was intrigued the whole time.... Definitely in need of a part 2!!!
Wow. The videography on the produce makes it feel so vibrant and plenty despite how remote the actual place is. Thank you VOX for highlighting this small yet beautiful village ❤.
What makes this piece special is every step, every website, every audio file, every grainy cellphone video, was meticulously crafted into a compelling narrative; like connecting dots on a cork-board. Thanks for bringing us along for the ride! An important piece of investigative journalism.
@@colebradbury1808fair point and I don't think the first commenter point was that all the credits would go to the "guy". Which is not what you've said, also, but the research to look for documents and the right people, the interviews and such were necessary and as important. And the initial idea, of course. A good analogy would be one was the brains and the on foot team were the muscle. One cannot succeed without the other.
Actually one of the most heartwarming journalism I've seen in a good while. You can tell every single person involved in the making for this video was passionate about this mountain and its people, and it makes it be miles above in terms of production and mere journalistic work than other videos out there. Simply, bravo.
@@maxkho00 well news flash, 260k people liked the video and not one word was used to describe a rabbit hole. Besides you. If you didn't like the video, you should've just skipped to the following one. The biggest social media platform and you decided to watch this video 🤭😂😂
what you've done here is nothing short of inspirational for others like you who are fascinated to research and learn about the society, and world we live in.
Couldn’t love this story more. Sitting on the couch at 5:30 in the morning, watching this with a coffee in my hand in London, you transported me to a place where creativity, curiosity, and perseverance revealed a reminder of the amazing stories of human life. Very touching. Well done. Please continue to make things like this.
I’m almost in tears because of the love and depth in which you have come together to create this documentary. I love documentaries!!! this one has so much research and passion and curiosity that made it come full circle. I appreciate all the work you have put into this and the teams of other folks have made this possible. I absolutely love this!
Hello! I'm from Madagascar and wanna thank you and all the teams that contributed for realising this video. It awakens us the young generations that Madagascar is having such a great and fertile place that we can help by contributing on the road construction and and all the supply chain that should comes with it.
Speechless. This is the investigative journalism I come for from Vox - well produced and shot. Thank you for literally putting them on the map. I just hope they're able to keep their preferred lifestyle in peace.
This was an absolutely amazing adventure! I would love if you and Vox would produce an entire series of videos just like this for other remote curiosities around the world.
They did a similar one called "Who made these circles in the Sahara?" which was just as detailed and deep, so be sure to watch that one if you haven't seen it yet!
It amazes me how Vox was able to use research to connect people to such a remote village and share its story with the world. As a budding geospatial analyst, this video and process is super inspiring!! Makes me remember again why I love studying the Earth and its people.
The reason why most google maps sites on the crater, were attack on titan references; it’s because if you flip the world map and compare it with attack on titan’s you realize that it’s the same. It also has some importance that most of the series and manga takes place on the island of Madagascar(Paradis) and if that wasn’t much enough, there’s also in the series and manga, 3 huge walls that form 3 circles right where the crater is located.
Those russian weebs on internet just got no life imagine having time to do this lol. They have similarity with paradis people tho they searched for a new place to have better life.
I am so very glad I had this series in my feed - and that I looked at it. It was the google photo of the fingerprint trees. I really had to find out about that fingerprint - there was no scar! But it was soo different! LOL 😋🌲 It was fascinating. (Too bad it’s a monoculture :/ ) You do so much research and really dig into it with one thing leading another - but you see the connections leading you down so many paths till you finally find what you’re looking for - and finding out about things other than where you started. And I love that you take us with you, instead of just talking about the end result. Do you ever hit a dead end in looking for something? Thanks soo much. Have a sunny, bright day :) ☀️💙🌷🌱
Wow, well done. From taking the time to talk to scholars all over the world and using the people in that country who know the culture and have the hands on experience, this is exactly the kind of care, respect, and research that’s required when making any kind of production that has to do with communities like this one. Unfortunately, not a lot of media companies do. I hope they take note. Really great video.
Just do so in ways that is respectful to their cultural norms, lifestyles and sensitivities, while ensuring that consent is given by the inhabitants of said secluded settlements to make such discoveries into documentaries on TH-cam
I watched this video and then immediately searched the village in Google Map. It is so beautiful. Huge respects to everyone involved in bringing spotlight to this village.
I am not sure how I stumbled onto this amazing piece but I am glad that I did. Not only the context and the location of this creative story. But the formula of the story giving viewers an education on geology 101 but also building an anticipation on what was this circular shape mystery. As someone like myself who went to film school and gave up, this piece gave me inspiration. Thank you to VOX and everyone who worked on this wonderful piece. These are the pieces that move us and to believe that anything is possible.
vox pays six figures to get algo boosted... for sure they did for the term madagascar, as this autoplays before any other video.. and i have autoplay off also... says a lot 💸
It's funny how I take for granted my knowledge. I'm a PhD candidate in geology, specifically focusing on a certain type of volcano, so as soon as you said "this is a natural circle on a map" I'm like, "gotta be an impact crater or a volcano, duh!". But... not duh! Not everyone knows that, and it's cool to watch the process of people finding this out. The Earth is amazing and the research you've done here to narrow this down is really stunning!
![กี่หมื่นฟ้า | Your Sky Series EP.1 [1/4]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/vLGjxFL6U_I/mqdefault.jpg)
Thanks so much for watching! This video was a massive collaboration over the course of several months, and there was so much material we couldn’t fit into the final piece. For an extended look at the interviews with the people living in and around the mountain, check out this bonus video: th-cam.com/video/YIOon-drZhE/w-d-xo.html
😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢
😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢
@@prashanth.kshetri4126before 2005 wakanda have good glocking sheild but now it's failed so you can see them 😂
What all those Russian names is about? you need solve it for me 😂❤
@@shonshamuratov859 I think the names come more from India than from Africa.
We loved to shoot this episode ❤ Immense gratitude goes to @Vox for not only amplifying the voices of the resilient people of Ambohiby but also providing them with the means to tell their extraordinary story. It's an honor to witness their greatness and courage, deserving the spotlight and attention they've received. Moreover, the opportunity granted to name Anosibe properly stands as a testament to the significance of their culture and heritage. Through this act, their narrative gains even more depth, resonating powerfully with the world and ensuring their legacy endures with its rightful name. From Madagascar with love ❤
Wonderful work! Thanks for taking us there!
Thank you so much! God bless you all!
You and your team did such a fantastic job and your videographer Rado really captured it in a way that made me fall in love with the place and people. Sending you all so much love!
thank you for helping make this possible
Thanks so much for your kind words. We're so happy that @Vox granted us with the chance to share a piece of our land with us, taking you to a perspective which is different from lemurs and baobabs (even if yes, all of this is super lovely)... From Madagascar with love 💕
I would like to thank VOX for having contacted us to carry out the descent and filming on Ambohiby.
It wasn't an easy task, especially for me as a fixer, but with good preparation and the right team, the result speaks for itself.
Thanks also to Lalie Rabeharison for the collaboration. Looking forward to the next project.
You were great. There wouldn't have been a video without your contribution.
Fantastic work sirs.
Ya now leave them alone.
Good work brother!
Incredible work! I love seeing things like this. I only hope that this doesn't bring the people the wrong kind of attention and that they get to keep living there in peace, with their space.
It is suddenly eye-opening to see that there are places beyond our narrow vision. Kudos to the team for this great piece. Deserves awards.
Hm........ precautions could be taken to prevent foreign and regional meddling in this community's incredible livelihood and unique surrounding geology.
Just normal people. What a "surprise".
@@Ingrafre I suspect that the background music is what makes people like these so much. Music is that powerful. And people are that susceptible. It just works!
How so? They didn't really do anything creative. While quite possibly ruining that place via their exploitation. The people who live there need to know they have every right to keep everyone else out. All the while growing their population and improving their road.
The people who came from somewhere else have a right to keep others out? You are deluded. People have the right to move just as they did, and exploration isn't "ruining" anything. Your comment is what deserves an award.@@cjackfly
Their lives would benefit from a road but a road would change the dynamic completely. Maybe they are very lucky in this sad time on this planet to just stay with their peace and safety and love. Bless them!❤
Exactly! The more they are remote and out of touch the better especially today!!!
Exactly! The more they are remote and out of touch the better especially today!!!
I believe the distance to get there equals it out so a road is really needed and again they could grow fields of citrus trees around them as defence. I also don’t believe they are scared of more people since they settled to farm. I’m African and you guys are reaching
@@Glenn-m1tno always… the fact that they were treated as ‘spies’ when they first got there means there is something they are doing that is illegal and they know it is which is why they didn’t want them there. They aren’t like the sentanlises, they know of modern technology and use it. They are remote, but not such that they are uncontactable. Something… is off…
As a malagasy, I can’t express how grateful I am for this amazing piece of work; respectful, thoroughly researched, beautifully filmed, written and edited. I rarely get to come across such high quality content about my country by accident and I can say without exaggeration that all of the effort put into this video sincerely touches me. Thank you!
❤ Mazotoa Priscilla
I didn't know much about madagaskar before i came across this video, it was nice to get some education about your country by acciedent. cheers
I bet if that village sets up an online crowdfund, they can get engineers to dig a car tunnel through the mountain to make the trip to the village easier.
Salama. Yeah, very good content
Agreed it’s wonderful. The pronunciation is killing me though 😂
This is the kind of investigative journalism we so rarely see anymore amidst social media and the 24 hour news cycle. It took you literally months to put this story together, all arising from one moment of curiosity, and every second of the result was worth it. More of this, please.
Seems a bit silly. Oh no, a 10km ride or walk. You could do a weeks trip walking 120km carrying your gear.
@@jepulis6674 Did you see the amount of camera/mic/drone equipment they had??? It's also a volcanic crater... really steep and rugged topography...
@@rodneychan914 Yeah. Not to mention that it's not like there's a highway leading there. The dirt road is almost inexistent, with rough terrain and a strong rainy season it must be almost impossible get there without a car
This is all very silly.
Anyone can see why people would settle there - it's protected and it has water.
This is elementary... how is this so amazing to everyone?
@@poolhall9632 i'd say it's less about why and the fact that there's barely any information or dat on the village and how secluded and remote it is
I gotta say, I love this sort of reporting style.
Instead of having a pre planned narrative, it starts with a hook, something to get you curious, then just goes through the entire thought and research process, keeping you curious, making it easy to understand where the information is coming from while also being super transparent about the research method.
Great stuff as always.
Reporting? Dude literally just did Google searches.
@@leviandhiro3596it was a fair bit more than just Google searches, did you even watch the video? 🤦🏽
@@leviandhiro3596Bro, did you think reaching out to different local experts after collating infos from google is easy? On top of that, they paid a local team to personally check the site twice.
@@leviandhiro3596Definitely not ! I can guarrantee you that stuff like this takes time, and cost some money too. It's not just about googling for free as you think.
I find it a really annoying style.
What an amazing community! When I was a kid, I love to read about pioneer stories, and these people are real pioneers. They were looking for a better life and room and a place where their hard work would matter and they found it. I think that’s so amazing. Beautiful people and a beautiful place.
What an amazing story and incredible journalism. Hats off to Christophe and everyone involved in the production of this video. I found myself tearing up when the village elder talked about how proud he was of his produce. Hopefully, they can get some better roads to the area soon.
They'd have to make them themselves. It reminds me of the movie _Big Fish_ where this town out in the middle of nowhere finally got its streets paved, and connected to outside roads, but then they had to pay taxes and its quality went down.
also, amazing of them to hire local professionals to tell their own stories
They escaped frenzy but the day they'll have a decent road, problems will come along like they always do. Vox I appreciate most of your work but this time I'm not sure you're doing those villagers a favor...
right, i think that they know they don't need roads. They seem to have one of the most peaceful places on the plant and roads could ruin that. They didn't seem very upset about the journey to sell crop, just stated it was in fact a difficult journey. I think they only sell the cash crops for the necessities.@@sandal_thong8631
@@lorenzoblum868absolutely, outsiders will know there's a land like this, move there, or even steal their land. Vox should've left them alone, untouched.
As a geographer I can tell you this video is absolutely incredible. What you did is something a geographer would love to do, the extensive research on aiming to a group of people and trying to understand why they ended up there in such a unique place is something very few would do. I'm glad your curiosity and vox let you do it. Kudos to the entire team and greetings to those friends in Anosibe Ambohiby.
A fascinating piece of exploration. What we get to see here is essentially the same thing that would have happened sometimes in the American Old West, in medieval Europe, in early China or in 17th/19th century Siberia, but it's very rarely documented in pictures and with the actual words and stories of the settlers themselves.
@@louise_rose Absolutely. To think that in this age you just go somewhere and get some land that nobody wanted yet, it is really incredible.
I imagined that everywhere every square meter of land is cartographed and belongs to someone or some authority.
Or maybe they bought the rights from local authorities.
Coincidence or not, just the other day I watched again the story of those malagasi kidnapped by slavers two centuries ago, and marooned for decades in the middle of the ocean on a sand bar.
As a Malagasy, I used to live in Tsiroanomandidy for 10 years but never heared a story about this place. So i'm so grateful that you make a video about it, thanks for all your intersest. Big thanks too for Lalie's Team who makes this experience possible. I'm so proud to live in this beautiful country, full of diversity and full of nice people♥️
❤
Hello from New York
I am visiting your country at the moment from South Africa, and I have to say, it is so beautiful and the people are friendly and kind. I'm falling in love with Madagascar
Why she lion 😂😂😂😂😂
Austronesian gang. afaka
"Isolated in a remote part of a remote region of geographically isolated country" AND YET people still won't leave you alone.
It's in our nature cry about it
@@mrmarcusshelton94i think you're the one crying. it's a joke. 😢
@mrmarcusshelton94 too bad they weren't cannibals
I mean they wanted roads to connect them to other towns so thry can sell things
@@lSAMV31lbad joke. U want cannibalism? Just go to uncontacted tribe that’s famous for that.
Imagine moving to the most remote place you could find to escape everyone and then you end up on the internet.
Yo, for real.
Yeah except they didn't do it because they don't like pepole but because they needed land to farm , this dosen't hurt them and the research vox did here genuatley benefited the world.
Exactly what I was thinking.
and someone exposing where you moved and the government now more likely to kick you off the land so someone can make a few dollars for a youtube video ..........
Agreed. Even though they might benefit from the exposure what comes with it will no doubt be the basis of why they migrated there to begin with. All of the trappings that being noticed brings.
This is the type of video essays/documentary I love:
"I saw something cool on google earth and wanted to learn more about it"
I saw something on google earth, and let's make views and money "about it".
are you mad people want to turn their interests into money? @@M0MENTuM.
@@M0MENTuM.Yeah that’s how TH-cam works buddy, if you make good content you get views and money
even bots can prove theyre human now wow so smart @@M0MENTuM.
@@M0MENTuM. I mean look at the hours of effort that went into the video. If it was financially fruitless, people wouldn't/wouldn't be able to make such videos.
One of the most touching pieces I have seen this year. It is like a whole investigation behind one of those random questions you ask yourself at 2am on a work night while mindlessly roaming through the internet. This is the dream of every geography nerd that just likes to browse through Google Maps. Congratulations to Vox and the whole Malagasy team on the ground, really a beautiful story.
Touching? They found a group of hiding criminals. These criminal towns are always found in remote areas. Alaska is full of them. The Amazon is full of them. People that have messed up their lives too completely to live in society, so they started their own. These towns are invariably filled with crime and murder. As their residents are criminals and killers. That's why they thought the film crew was spies.
And then decide to overcomplicate the discovery...
I wonder how many little quiet secretive villages and tribal retreats will be spoiled by people with nothing much else to do than surf around the planet with Google Earth and then investigate.
Don't encourage this uselessness
Well at least I'm glad to know I'm not alone at 2:00 in the morning
It still makes me happy to know people can still do this. Just decide we want to go somewhere else for better. And not have to file tons of paperwork or get permission from any government just go and live. Thats beautiful
I am from Madagascar. And THANK YOU.
This video brought me to tears. Thank you for taking months to do in-depth research about this remote space in a remote and largely unknown country like Madagascar.
The realization and the storytelling are mesmerizing.
Misaotra !
We shared the same land some 55 million years ago so hello to my long lost cousin from India 😄❤
@@mad4790smartest indian:
Can we just talk about how incredible the team that got there is? Not only did they get there, they got incredible footage, interviews, amazing cinematic shots... really amazing!
Yes we can!
Thank you so much ❤
@@lalierabeyou are best ❤ lots of love from India 🇮🇳
This doc AREALLY does deserve a seriously big AWARD! How can we make that happen?! Anybody know?
@@ಭಾರತೀಯ_ನಾಗರಿಕ can we build it?
I'm glad you guys went on to do this documentary. It's amazing how the Internet connects people but honestly, it gives me relief when you found out the name of the crater and the village. I just hope that by shining a light onto this community won't put them in any danger but instead create a better infrastructure without damaging the area.
My point about wishing they had been left alone - life's pretty rough in Madagascar so my hope is that they are not joined by others especially as they are a minority. Let's not even think about corporations and corruption
im betting my left nut that since this docu is out, some marketing experts contacting travel agencies and developers thinking how could they push out the village build a hotel and charge semi rich firstworlders tons of cash. thanks vox.
Don't worry, colonization has been super cool and hasnt been the slightest bit destructive everywhere else in Africa right?
@@LittlewingsTravelsyeah, we all know minorities are incapable of deception and corruption. Just ‘pure’ native. If this happened in eastern Washington the very act of planting orange trees would break laws on ‘conservation’ of the land
This is beautifully made!!! The resilience of humanity and the people of Madagascar will never cease to amaze me! Misoatra betsaka!
i LOVE this series of "so we were on google maps just looking around and found something we couldn't answer. Here's how we satisfied our curiosity."
I don't care if it's just half an hour of showing how you googled well
or if it's "so we had to get someone to go there and spend a bunch of money getting an answer"
this is peak human curiosity on display and it's a sentiment i can only adore and respect.
please don't ever stop this series!
You sound insufferable
Have they already done some of these?
I'm curious to se others as well
there's a youtuber named The Trek Planner that does this in the US!
@@patrickmorgan3840they did! i think they have made similar video like this with mysterious circular pattern in the middle of Sahara you can look it up
I hope and pray that no one causes trouble for these beautiful villagers after this documentary because it looks like not a lot of people knew about their existence. I pray that they continue living in this beautiful secret haven without any interference from the outside world.
Not going to happen based on history.
The place is too far away for tourist to go there
I'm worried because they unnecessarily shared the fact that they're minority tribe in that location!! I hope they continue to live in peace
But they are not cutting themselves off from the world. They are growing cash crops of citrus and would like a decent road to take their produce to market. Nobody is going to brave that road lightly, so I think they are pretty safe.
My thoughts exactly, I hate this place has now been exposed. I can only imagine the type of issues and trouble this will cause the villagers.
That moment you changed the village name from “Crater Village” to “Anosibe Ambohiby” really moved me for some reason. It’s like they showed us how isolated people on this world really can be! Amazing video and the guy who took all of those clips in Madagascar, I applaud and appreciate you!
Right after this video began, the "crater" looked familiar. There is one almost identical to it which is far less remote, and is in South Africa. During the apartheid era it was located in a Bantustan close to Pretoria and Johannesburg. The resort of Sun City was built there, and a large portion of its crater is a national park.
This dude literally just sat at home and exposed them , risking this area to be explored by tourists altering its culture over time
@@thomaskirkpatrick3870 Not the point of my comment Tom💀😬. Just commenting how even though a high majority of people may not know of a place, doesn’t mean it doesn’t mean it’s not known to some people. It’s called “Experience beauty”.
@@thomaskirkpatrick3870 I really wonder how many tourists would want to make the rough trip from the nearest city to the crater. multiple hours of travel on rough roads isn't something many would do willingly.
They’re not isolated people, we are. Sit with that until something clicks.
At the end I can only say WOW!! The story line, the adventure, the footage. everything is perfect.
You probably won't see this but I found this video to be extremely well-made and I really appreciated you interviewing a mix of local experts and international experts. This was a beautifully-made video starting from scratch and I learned a lot about geology, as a physicist. This made me realize how big the international research scene was that researchers in such small towns did their master's thesis on such particular details. Thank you!
@-ef Oh yes we've seen this and we thank you. On behalf of the Malagasy Team ❤️
I liked it but I thought it was pretty weak that he didn’t even step foot off American soil. I would’ve gone myself, if that was me.
@@lalierabeyou're beautiful
@@lalierabe definitely agree with the other guy replying to you. respectfully, you're very beautiful.
Words cannot describe how well this video was researched and put together. The Vox team continues to outdo themselves.
Yea when they aren't spreading misinformation or false gun violence stats and slam pieces of people who share different viewpoints than them.
Unfortunately you're right. I wish Vox focused on making videos like this one instead of doing political videos.@@jsweizston5410
They want space, privacy, isolation. They did not want to be known or exposed. Filming them and now on youtube does not help.
@@jsweizston5410 why do you think the information about gun violence is not truth? I'm really interested because i saw comments saying this
@@jsweizston5410uu uth 076y⁷up phup1 P] p9bi bl iui hhhj989)) hi gtuuythuyu ppl h r j11p1
the fact that this content is free on youtube is amazing
NOTHING IS FREE.
@@Alan_Alien Well yeah you have to pay your internet provider, but it is literally Pennies for an entire documentary (Atleast in India where 50 mbps quality internet is cheap)
It’s shouldn’t be on change.
You’re hilarious. They made a super long video explaining that people use volcanic grounds in a logical (not very remote at all) way for farming. They made it seem super special but its not that special at all. Its a very normal and way of life in Madagascar.
It's only free if you cheat your way out of watching the ads.
This video is both a great research and such a massive intrusive/stalkerish project...
As an archaeologist, I was carrying similar thoughts over the last two weeks, working on an ancient Iron Age farming site with two round houses. I was thinking about the people, what they would have felt, what would have guided them to this land. But this video also reminded me how obsessive the creation of content is today, and how no stone can be left unturned, even when it means bothering people who are already afraid of being spied upon, yet filming them and uploading footages on TH-cam to make money and engagement.
What a strange world we live in.
I suppose the agreement of shooting and interviewing the head of those residents do shows their attitudes of welcoming for ppl to have a better understanding of all these things? I mean if they're worried about the situation you claimed, they could have refused their interviewing, but they didn't.
As a PhD student, I sometimes get lost in why we do research and what our missions are. You hit a best-ever example that reminds me to explore every corner of the world with a sharp mind like yours❤
What an extraordinary mini documentary. This was expertly put together, engaging and informative without relying on tick box journalism or catch phrases and weak references from google just to cover laziness or poor research. I have not been so engaged in a topic for a long time. As someone else in the comments said, this deserves awards. Journalism en-large should take cues from this and learn. Bravo, well done!!
20:55 something special at this moment, the music, the sight of what creative and constructive humans can do. The finest of nature and humans living together!
For once, seeing that with the arrival of humans, also came life.
Humans being humans lol❤️❤️
@@Leon_George what?
the combined music and the capture given gave me chills
That was a great moment the way it was capture and presented.
Everything done with google
everything start from google
impressive!
I think this may be my favorite Vox video ever. The mystery, the journey, the research, the beautiful landscapes, the Russian attack on titan landmarks, it’s all amazing
Definitly not impact craters?! Funny cuz dont want to say massive impacts cause massive tectonic shifts and pure global cha0ss🤔
Attack on titan thing is interesting to me at least because the main setting is actually based on our Madagascar
They definitely must call him first. Wasted potential. It's funny how russians occasionaly shitposted all of the internet.
The Russian attack on Titans XD
I found this video so therapeutic.
Growing up, when my friends and I were bored, we would just scroll across google earth and send each other screenshots of weird or strange places wondering what they were.
We could never go there, but I still do it from time to time saying up too late on the computer or my phone.
To actually see someone do a little adventure like this off of the same idea really got to me.
I hope this is a series. This was so cool.
Could do a "vacation" aboard on google maps (via street view). Look up all the flights and hotels, then go from there.
they made a video last year called "Who made these circles in the Sahara?" with the same concept!
Same as me ❤😂
I lived in Madagascar for two years a while back. Never anywhere this isolated - I was mostly in Antananarivo and Toamasina. I learned Malagasy and made some incredible friends. It was amazing getting to relive some experiences, and I was eagerly waiting for the point in the video where the malagasy interviews would happen.
A lot of commenters have expressed concern about the villagers being in a different ethnic region, so I'd like to give a little clarification: There is some ethnic tension on Madagascar, and definitely racism between the tribes, but intermingling is incredibly common, and the Betsileo tend to have good relations in places they move to. Most conflict comes when people are packed too close and are competing for reaources, and the Nosibe settlers are isolated enough to prevent that from being an issue.
I would love to see as many of the interviews as possible, and hope Vox makes more of their recordings available!
When people are packed to close together and competing for resources.
Forced integration is just as bad as forced segregation. You wonder why the western government leaders are so obsessed with forced integration? It’s like they want people to go at each other or something. Maybe they think we will be so consumed with that we won’t notice or care what they are doing? Sadly they are correct for most people but I think and hope there is enough people that see past their side show and are watching what they are doing to ALL of us.
Human nature…
Looking forward to some wealthy college kids getting the Government in Antananarivo to let them go do a mission trip to build a computer school there.
yeah i watched this cause i also lived there for almost a year
Alien 👽 abduction
Namaste to everyone reading this-we may never meet, but I wish you all the best and luck in life.
These are some of my favourite videos at Vox. They identify interesting places where not much is known about it then they make it known. Chistophe and everyone person who helped like Laile deserve such a big applause. I wish the town well. Great video keep it up.
I like local people being hired for the story as well
this one and that portugal surf beach, both bring tears toward the end of video 👍goodjob vox
can you recommend some more of their videos that are similar to this? ive only seen this one and the desert holes one
@@artx000 i think it’s just those two
The ending there actually made me shed a few tears. That was so beautifully concluded. We may be able to gain everything there is online, but nothing beats actually going out there, talking to people and being more present in life, even if it means going slightly out of your comfort zone. Amazing video, amazing story, and as usual, amazing research done by the team!
Leave those people alone.
@@anypercentdeathless Chill. I’m sure they did. All they wanted to know was simply the truth. They’re not bothering the villagers
@@sykn5422 I think more trekking will happen there since its famous now. But I hope they could use this for transporting their goods etc. And its also essential to find what is going on there.
Like he said leave those people alone.
As long as no one’s forcibly resettling them or taking control of them, having people travel back and forth to their locations is a good thing. It’ll encourage trade, and build a road for them - something they’ve actually wanted.
For those wondering about the Attack on Titan references *spoilers* and why Madagascar, the series mainly involves a group of people who live in a three tiered walled society that we later learn is built on and island. Later on maps are shown of the world and the map looks like a normal map of earth flipped upside down. In this upside-down map, we learn that the island where most of the story takes place happens on this Madagascar-parallel of an island.
this episode made me tear up, it's so cool to see a village in the middle of nowhere. absolutely love it! thank you vox and the researchers, geologists, film makers, etc for making this possible.
This whole video needs to win awards. This is amazing journalism. Job well done Christophe, Lalie, and the whole team behind this. I hope you go win the awards you deserve.
Fr, I think that the distinction between “video essay” and “documentary” is largely a matter of where it’s available - this would sure be one if it was on Netflix or what have you
Fascinating story. I hope being "discovered" doesn't mean these folks are overrun by others wanting space or having issues with them being there.
well this will be the case now. a paradise only exists where people are kept out. i find this kind of exploitation disgusting
That was my thought as well. But it's hard to have the solitude/autonomy with the desired roads to take things to the market.
Luckily, this is still far away from anything, in Madagascar which is a very remote place, only known by people that got or lived here. As far as I know, South African moguls are interested in Madagascar, no one else.
Oh that is 100% what is going to happen.
Couldn't stop thinking about it while watching
My thoughts also. Horrible to be sceptical, but we know how the greedy people of the world behave.
Once 'they' see a potential for profit or something else they can gain or steal from the peaceful people there, then they stand to lose their paradise.
No wonder, they were sceptical about allowing anyone in, especially with cameras.
It was a great video, and much work went into creating and presenting it, for sure, but my concerns are for that lovely little village. They don't seem to have any protection from 'outsiders'.
I hope someone can return there in a years' time maybe and see how they are doing.
It would be great if someone could help them out with transport and make their lives easier, without trying to steal their glory.
Thank you for this short documentary.
Lovely to see 'survivors'.
I hope that they remain safe, and don't lose the space they struggled to find. This was an incredible journey. The film crew did an amazing job reaching the destination and some great film work. Thank you for sharing this story.
Yes I agree that revealing a clan to the wider world definitely has its risks. There are a great many cases of tribes and small groups of people suffering from external Busy Body's.
I guarantee you they won't remain as safe with tourists to invade all the time. sad.
Exactly the problem with Western people, they don't even consider for one second the way their content on this huge platform will effect these people's lives.
I am afraid this would only lead to more land claims in Madagascar when rich & educated people of Madagascar will see that you can claim free land in the countryside. Soon it will lead to loss of free or wild land in the country.
@@terrymunoztrujillo483they will be safe. It's so remote that no tourists are ever going to get there. There is also nothing for the tourists to do there.
I love how you are telling a story at the same time showing to us the thorough and journalism behind it! My favorite video so far in this Channel!!!! Love to see more of this
This was an incredible story and I understand why the villagers might have had concerns talking to the team. They might be worried about more attention on them. They might not have any legal ownership over the land and could be worried about more people or the government looking into them. I hope that is not the case and they continue to live their peaceful life. Another things that amazes me is, the likeliness of this migration to how the humans ended up populating every corner of this world.
Yes, exactly makes me think the same thing.
So much can develope in only 15 years, imagine a few hundred. And how many human settlements like this have come and gone over the millenia? Must be countless.
Yeah, Madagascar is in a state of anarchy in most of the country. That would make groups have a little caution when dealing with unfamiliar people.
True, I also worry that their peace might be disturbed once many would know about their village and fertile lands.😢
@@KenDotComit's called Indigenous land rights. Look it up.
@@KenDotComHahahahaha I wouldn’t say it’s xenophobic, but I definitely would say it’s provocative. Sometimes you don’t have to think ‘Why can’t I?’, but have to think ‘Is it ethical’. There are standards and values, you know?
This is by far the best episode I've watched from Vox throughout the years, I just clicked this episode out of curiosity but I never thought that it will end with a remarkable place in my heart & mind. Thanks to Vox's team & Lalie's team, you guys deserved the best!
True high quality film-making on a fascinating subject matter. Good stuff Vox!
Thank you Vox for not only showing me the mystery, but helping to solve it and then showing us who these people are. What a fascinating journey these people made, and there they are in all their magnificent isolation. Though not really anymore because now we all know about them.
Truly one of the best videos on this platform. Please, please continue doing stuff like this. It is unbelievably fascinating. Props to the entire team for all the hard work.
Virtue signaling is lame
Stop it
@@sendthis9480 the irony of you commenting this on one of the few Vox videos that aren’t virtue signaling or pushing an agenda is hilarious.
@@sendthis9480Bye.
Just wanted to point out how amazing it is that at this day and age a video like this, 24 minutes long, deep in research, talking to specialists and discovering something has gathered so many views. In a world of fast shorts and deep misinformation, you've managed to produce a great informative work. Congratulations Christophe, Lalie and everyone at Vox! ❤
It is honestly a pleasure to watch such videos! I miss the documentary style videos that were popular.
It easily could’ve been a short. There was no story here at all. They repeated everything. In the end it was a very common and logical way of life in that part of the world. Also they made it seem very rural and special but its no different than 60 percent of Madagascar. Its funny how easily you believe everything you see on youtube.
@@user-ie6jr4bg1w you did not get my point 🤣 but sure
Joy to the World.
Sí muy lindo todo pero no me dijo lo que realmente formó todo esas cosas fue la luna para que sepa la Luna a hecho cosas impresionantes la tierra y ojo del Sahara lo hizo la Luna cuando se fue alejándose de la tierra círculos concéntricos cayeron bueno espero que lo entienda y cualquier cosa me llaman y se los explico
This story was absolutely WONDERFUL but I can't help to wonder about the potential negative impact this exposure will have on the village and it's resources. Hopefully, the impact is only good for as long as possible. 🤞
Amazing journalism as always!
That came into my mind as well, given that they occupy the space of a different ethnic group.
I can't help but think Nestlé is very excited about this video.
Yupp
I'm worried too. It's a beautiful hidden paradise, now under global exposure.
You virtue signal too much.
Stop pretending to care about things you’re clueless about.
This video proves that the best contents and content creators live in TH-cam.
As a person living in Madagascar (born and raised), this is actually mindblowing. I never knew about this. Thanks for the video!
It is amazing that we have some spaces like this. Your country is beautiful, & like many, I hear there's much good & bad....c'est la vie, eh!
Even in London, where I've been many years, I still find some places that I had no clue about. Not as fantastic as this spot, but still interesting.
I shall think of you out there on that island & I wish you all the best : D
This is absolutely amazing. Well done on the production on this one, and massive props to Andriamanisa for the incredible footage, and of course everyone else on the team
That's the thing I appreciate most about this brilliant piece of work - it wasn't a TH-camr going to the place and giving us their opinions, they paid a local crew to do the interviews and show us this community. That's how it should be done.
@@gordon1545 Absolutely. Getting local experts is the way to go
also their documentary shots were filmed really good! i wish someone paid them to explore around places like this more often in madagascar so we can see more of things like this!
@@gordon1545 Wow, now that you mentioned it, almost got past me. It's the proper way! It wasn't Vox sending their people, they hired locals which are way better than even Vox themselves.
YES! You made another one! I've been praying for another one since your weird spots in the desert video and this just blew me away. Fantastic job to the team who went on this discovery and Chris for job well done. I love that you funded locals into doing this rather than hiring an american team. Someone please tell Lalie that she and her team did an amazing job and also to Rado, a huge thank you for showing us this in such a breathtaking way.
Yes the local touch was great!
Yes same here, loved the Saharan weird spots
And great comment
Local team was probably a lot cheaper than an american team.
Thank you for sharing this journey with us ❤️
Thank you to everyone who made this video possible! Especially Lalie and her team!
I stumbled across this completely randomly, but it's one of the most compelling human stories I've ever found on TH-cam. You did an amazing job on research and the production is first class. Quite well shot and edited. Bravo. I look forward to more of your work.
Amazing
I too stumbled on it. A very good story. The power of the internet, however a double edged sword. Now a lot of people know about this place, I hope it brings them more prosperity. A better road perhaps.
Steve USA
Completely randomly? It's being recommended to everybody who watches TH-cam right now. : P
This was amazing.
Vox please continue these types of projects and stay far way from politics
If you enjoyed the story centered around this village you should try the channel Rare Earth, it is in the same vein, and has stories from all over the world.
This is definitely one of the more interesting videos that I've seen on TH-cam lately. You would never expect people to be living in Madagascar out of nowhere. What happened to civilizations and new cultures is going to be an interesting factoid that we run into as we grow as a species
You might not but plenty of people who were perhaps educated in a different country/society would be. Everything is unique and amazing when you have grown up and lived your life in yee haww 'murica.
I got mesmerized when I saw the lemon and orange field 😮
those people are the future new civilizations
You would never expect people to be living in Madagascar?? I can appreciate curiosity but it’s a country…. I’m perplexed.
Wow, you nailed it! As a fellow Malagasy, I'm stoked that you've given our local talent a chance to shine in these breathtaking scenes. I can only imagine the hustle and bustle backstage - thank you so much for your time and effort in bringing this masterpiece to reality! We could certainly do with more videos like this! Ones that highlight the good things in life instead of the usual gloom and political drama. Misaotra!
I was also happy to hear from the Malagasy scientists and guides. Near the beginning of the video I was thinking "Please tell me you didn't send a crew of white folks to check up on what the local people were up to." I'm glad they didn't go that route.
@@lorigoshert6667is there something wrong with white ppl?
@@cory_hugs7850 Yes, they are the least corrupted on the island.
@@cory_hugs7850 Way to get instantly defensive.
@@Slaaan ah yes, the vox woke fanbase
I'm in awe. This story is amazing. There's so much to learn from the world.
This is so wonderful! YOU TOOK US THERE. Amazing research, amazing footage, amazing people. This is just so incredibly made. You literally put them in the map. This piece deserves an Oscar. SOOOOO MUCH LOVE TO THIS CRAFT.
Great, now the village is going to be overrun by yuppie tourists.
Yeah, possibly, and tourism could either be a good thing or a bad thing for an isolated place like that.@@noseboop4354
Yeah, was thinking too, what a wonderful piece. Beautiful narrative. Hope Vox gets to keep making pieces like this.
Hope the villagers don't face any negative consequences due to this video. Surprisingly, this has not been addressed in the video. And at the time of writing (9 hours after the upload), none of the top comments are expressing any concern about this.
Just to be clear, there are a ton of negative consequences that could arise from this. The worst is they might get thrown out of that land because they don't own it.
true..normally tribes dont take well of another tribe coming into their land .. this video will bring issue
This was my concern too after watching this video.
their government might not like it too..
I came w similar concerns. They needed left alone. More attention brings unsavory types. We all know what colonizers do
considering how difficult it is to get there. I doubt much efforts would be made to kick them out especially if there isn't anything to gain from it. Sure maybe the government would express their concerns, but to make actual efforts to kick them out requires far too much effort and money.
I'm gonna cry. As a geology student and a huge fan of Vox videos involving sociocultural topics, I gotta say I was geeking out throughout the whole video. This video deserves an award and the whole community and the team behind this video deserves to know how highly appreciated their involvement in this venture is. God bless!
Excellent production! At first, I was skeptical, but the more I watched, the more spellbound I got! Supersubstantial timeline data research! Easy to follow and understand!
One of the best Vox videos in a while !
Very entretaining, engaging and informative
Congrats !
Stop the virtue signaling!!!
@@sendthis9480what virtue signalling?
@@sendthis9480 is the "virtue signaling" in the room with us right now?
It feels really similar to the video about circles in the sahara, which is one of my favourite videos on this channel.
@@sendthis9480this is actually the way to provide insight on a remote community, you ask permission, and you let them speak for themselves, that’s cultural relativism and should be applauded and showcased as a good example. WE NEED more journalism that respects cultures and lets them tell their own story.
Love when it went from tense first interaction to "Come check out our land!" beautiful
humans really do be like that though.
most of our closed-off-ness comes from not knowing whether someone wishes to harm us or not.
which is fair enough.
A hundred years from now they will probably wish they never let anyone in. I can see why they may want to though because they seem to need help with roads, etc. I just hope they don’t end up like the Native Americans
@@NuggetGal humans do be traumatized
Looks like a awesome place to be as a kid, exploring the hills. Feeling connected to the sky’s and space at night with no light pollution.
Indeed but imagine having to get help when you do kid things like hurt yourself playing around. Pros and cons to it all.
i just hope it says that way
Skies
Yes, you don't want to end up in the hospital there @@s70driver2005
@@s70driver2005
Absolutely fascinating! Thanks for sharing, Vox!
A road would make their paradise more easily accessible, but also corrupted by the same conditions they fled. This was a beautiful story. I hope they can find a balance that will keep their peace, and make them more prosperous.
exactly. better roads would make it easier, but that brings in more people and ruins it.
Yeah. I hope they never get a road. They dodged a bullet with the research team.
Sorry.
I love the fact you guys hired local people to record this
Yes as opposed to Hiring Canadians. Who else are they going to hire Japanese Madagascar language speaking locals
I thought the same thing I do hope they were paid ..it sure would have cost them much more if they had to travel to come to that country
@@labla8940 You say that but news crews hiring a crew from their own countries instead of a local crew is something unfortunately very common
@@KaoKacique Not really. By far most on-site pieces are produced by local crews. The production might be lead by someone else though
What a fantastic piece with superb Vox-level production values!
I am a geologist and lived in Madagascar in 1984-85, the island and its people are beautifully unique and very friendly. Your combination of a Google Earth mystery investigation, accurate plate tectonic geology, remarkable alkali mantle plume remnants and your obvious love of a good story makes for a great piece.
Thanks for the fun.
Have you seen Nick Zentner's geology videos on TH-cam? He's a geology professor at CWU in Washington, talking about the ice age floods and lots of other really interesting stuff, including video of many of his lectures and visiting sites in the field.
@@zeruty for sure, Nick's great, I have taken groups on Geologic field trips in this area for many years....fascinating landscape and great wine too!
Brava! This is the kind of story I crave. Thank you everyone involved for bringing this us, and broadening each of our tiny lives! - & my deep respect to those who took on the arduous trek. I’ll be smiling for the rest of the day. ❤
I usually do not comment on videos but great story Christopher. I am amazed at your efforts hiring local people to do part of your reporting instead of you traveling there as amazing that could have been. I have never thought about ethical reporting in this sense and this is a push to make sure talent is seen, as well as local degrees (such as the masters thesis student that had journeys to the crater) help can provide in narrating these touching stories. Great job
@sergiomares9952 Yes we're incredibly grateful to Christophe and the exceptional team at Vox for their trust and for providing us with this invaluable opportunity. Sending a local crew to produce the show in our community isn't a common occurrence, making this trust even more significant to us. It's through their belief in us that Johary, our fellow compatriot and a skilled Hydrologist who grew up amidst those majestic mountains, could share their expertise. This unique chance not only honors our community's knowledge but also amplifies Johary's insights, enriching the understanding of our region's unique hydrology and heritage.
As a Nigerian, my heart melted seeing Nigeria just above Madagascar on the list for countries with disastrous road networks. Nigeria really is in need of a robust leader. This is actually one of the best documentary ever from Vox. I was intrigued the whole time.... Definitely in need of a part 2!!!
Could be a way of keeping Mega Corp out.
India needs a good leader as well bro, i can understand
@@horseshoe804 modi isnt doing too bad no?
😊@@calvinabbott6920
@@jeffidk-dd8mm as of geopolitics yeah, as of politics within the country, no.
Speaking as a Geography and World Cultures teacher, this was 24 minutes well spent. Thank you for this video that I can share with my students.
Teach how americans invades a land in a year !!
You are a dope and shouldn't be teaching
Wow. The videography on the produce makes it feel so vibrant and plenty despite how remote the actual place is. Thank you VOX for highlighting this small yet beautiful village ❤.
What makes this piece special is every step, every website, every audio file, every grainy cellphone video, was meticulously crafted into a compelling narrative; like connecting dots on a cork-board. Thanks for bringing us along for the ride! An important piece of investigative journalism.
Counterpoint: this is just a guy in an apartment with Google. The real work was done by the people who actually went there.
@@colebradbury1808fair point and I don't think the first commenter point was that all the credits would go to the "guy". Which is not what you've said, also, but the research to look for documents and the right people, the interviews and such were necessary and as important. And the initial idea, of course.
A good analogy would be one was the brains and the on foot team were the muscle. One cannot succeed without the other.
Actually one of the most heartwarming journalism I've seen in a good while. You can tell every single person involved in the making for this video was passionate about this mountain and its people, and it makes it be miles above in terms of production and mere journalistic work than other videos out there. Simply, bravo.
Bro just casually assembled an international research team to follow a rabbit hole lol
🥱 jaja 👍 not funny 😑
@@eltexmex7399 Humour subjective. I and 280 other people found it funny.
who exactly is this bro? The 500 million usd corporation vox media?
Be grateful.
@@maxkho00 well news flash, 260k people liked the video and not one word was used to describe a rabbit hole. Besides you. If you didn't like the video, you should've just skipped to the following one. The biggest social media platform and you decided to watch this video 🤭😂😂
what you've done here is nothing short of inspirational for others like you who are fascinated to research and learn about the society, and world we live in.
Couldn’t love this story more. Sitting on the couch at 5:30 in the morning, watching this with a coffee in my hand in London, you transported me to a place where creativity, curiosity, and perseverance revealed a reminder of the amazing stories of human life. Very touching. Well done. Please continue to make things like this.
I’m almost in tears because of the love and depth in which you have come together to create this documentary. I love documentaries!!! this one has so much research and passion and curiosity that made it come full circle. I appreciate all the work you have put into this and the teams of other folks have made this possible. I absolutely love this!
Hello! I'm from Madagascar and wanna thank you and all the teams that contributed for realising this video.
It awakens us the young generations that Madagascar is having such a great and fertile place that we can help by contributing on the road construction and and all the supply chain that should comes with it.
Guess you know your purpose or at least one of them good luck getr done. Call the homestead guy that helps people homestead in Alaska
I love this kind of content. It's so wholesome and helps us learn more about the world we're living on.
Speechless. This is the investigative journalism I come for from Vox - well produced and shot. Thank you for literally putting them on the map. I just hope they're able to keep their preferred lifestyle in peace.
We need more of this Google Maps exploration journalism! Another masterpiece from Christophe and the Vox team!
This was an absolutely amazing adventure! I would love if you and Vox would produce an entire series of videos just like this for other remote curiosities around the world.
They did a similar one called "Who made these circles in the Sahara?" which was just as detailed and deep, so be sure to watch that one if you haven't seen it yet!
I'd love a Netflix series of these.
Does anyone know any videos already made that are like this one?
no thanks, i prefer they cover actual events and interesting phenomena
@@mrsmiley4842 yeah, people want this kinds of video to drag down when they cam just explore their local history
It amazes me how Vox was able to use research to connect people to such a remote village and share its story with the world. As a budding geospatial analyst, this video and process is super inspiring!! Makes me remember again why I love studying the Earth and its people.
The reason why most google maps sites on the crater, were attack on titan references; it’s because if you flip the world map and compare it with attack on titan’s you realize that it’s the same. It also has some importance that most of the series and manga takes place on the island of Madagascar(Paradis) and if that wasn’t much enough, there’s also in the series and manga, 3 huge walls that form 3 circles right where the crater is located.
😂😂 Amazing.
i was about to say this
Those russian weebs on internet just got no life imagine having time to do this lol. They have similarity with paradis people tho they searched for a new place to have better life.
Eren is black
What an astounding journey!
you
Nice
i like it
👍
❤❤❤
This is so incredible. I'm amazed on how you and vox continued to support this project that was going nowhere for months.
You went full in
I am so very glad I had this series in my feed - and that I looked at it. It was the google photo of the fingerprint trees. I really had to find out about that fingerprint - there was no scar! But it was soo different! LOL 😋🌲
It was fascinating. (Too bad it’s a monoculture :/ ) You do so much research and really dig into it with one thing leading another - but you see the connections leading you down so many paths till you finally find what you’re looking for - and finding out about things other than where you started. And I love that you take us with you, instead of just talking about the end result.
Do you ever hit a dead end in looking for something?
Thanks soo much. Have a sunny, bright day :) ☀️💙🌷🌱
Wow, well done. From taking the time to talk to scholars all over the world and using the people in that country who know the culture and have the hands on experience, this is exactly the kind of care, respect, and research that’s required when making any kind of production that has to do with communities like this one. Unfortunately, not a lot of media companies do. I hope they take note. Really great video.
More of this please, Vox. Make this into a series where we journey into the 'unknown'.
No, this video is good but We shouldn't be disturbing secluded tribes or places just for internet clout.
it's not for internet clout it's for scholars mostly @@InderjitSidhux
Just do so in ways that is respectful to their cultural norms, lifestyles and sensitivities, while ensuring that consent is given by the inhabitants of said secluded settlements to make such discoveries into documentaries on TH-cam
Vox did a similar video like this not too long ago in northern Africa
@@InderjitSidhux Maybe it was a good thing. It may have relaxed future tensions towards outsiders
I watched this video and then immediately searched the village in Google Map. It is so beautiful. Huge respects to everyone involved in bringing spotlight to this village.
I can watch this type of content all year long. Thanks vox. We need more of these.
That cut between the Google Maps 3D terrain view and the drone footage from the exact same angle was so cool! (4:05)
I am not sure how I stumbled onto this amazing piece but I am glad that I did. Not only the context and the location of this creative story. But the formula of the story giving viewers an education on geology 101 but also building an anticipation on what was this circular shape mystery. As someone like myself who went to film school and gave up, this piece gave me inspiration. Thank you to VOX and everyone who worked on this wonderful piece. These are the pieces that move us and to believe that anything is possible.
because vox pays to be on front page... pretty obvious
vox pays six figures to get algo boosted... for sure they did for the term madagascar, as this autoplays before any other video.. and i have autoplay off also... says a lot 💸
vox is a google preferred adpartner... for the term madagascar this week. they pay to be seen for one reason... 2024
Samesies
It's funny how I take for granted my knowledge. I'm a PhD candidate in geology, specifically focusing on a certain type of volcano, so as soon as you said "this is a natural circle on a map" I'm like, "gotta be an impact crater or a volcano, duh!". But... not duh! Not everyone knows that, and it's cool to watch the process of people finding this out. The Earth is amazing and the research you've done here to narrow this down is really stunning!
I really like this piece of investigative journalism. Well done all involved.