Archive for May, 2011

The Tunnel is (A)LIVE! Download Now…

by BitTorrent on May 18, 2011 in Featured Content with 11 Comments

Do you love a good horror flick? Do you love being the first to see awesome new movies before your friends? The Tunnel, set amidst a maze of abandoned tunnels winding underneath Sydney Australia, is a deliciously creepy thriller *just* released today.

Download the official torrent, or find the film in the special The Tunnel app in the App Studio.

It’s the first film ever released simultaneously on TV, DVD and BitTorrent. It’ll even be shown on the big screen at Hoyt Entertainment Quarter in Sydney this June for four weeks, and was screened at the Marché du Film at the Cannes Film Festival. This instant global distribution strategy formed by the ambitious and progressive team of Julian Harvey and Enzo Tedeschi will be watched closely by both the digital technology and film industry. We’re very excited to be a part of it.

The film is free, with the filmmaker’s permission. If you like it, there are a couple of ways you can show the filmmakers your support and be a part of history:

  1. Buy a frame (or two) of the film. Enzo and Julian creatively crowd funded the film through the advance sales of single frames. Own a piece of The Tunnel! You’ll receive a printable PDF of your frame(s), a perfect memento.
  2. Order a DVD with special extras (info here, purchase here.)
  3. If you live in Sydney, go see the film on the big screen at Hoyt’s EQ in June! Buy tickets here.
  4. Connect with the filmmakers on Twitter and/or Facebook
  5. Spread the word to your friends – tweet it, post to FB, even share a channel with the film using Project Chrysalis personal content channels 

Enjoy the film and let us know what you think!

Get Ready, The Tunnel Premieres Next Week (Buy Frames!)

by BitTorrent on May 13, 2011 in Featured Content with 1 Comment

We are thrilled to announce tonight – appropriately on Friday the 13th – that we’re officially partnering with the filmmakers behind horror film The Tunnel to bring it directly to you next week! Details in the press release.

Anticipation for The Tunnel has already captured the imagination of people around the world, ever since the filmmakers (Julian Harvey and Enzo Tedeschi of Australia’s Distracted Media) announced their intention to premiere it directly to fans on BitTorrent. We’re excited to help support this effort through the Artist Spotlight program and a variety of promotions, plus the film will be available to you directly in the App Studio as soon as it’s released next Wednesday, May 18.

You don’t have to wait until next Wednesday to be a part of history. Buy individual frames (or a segment) of The Tunnel today (get one before they’re sold out!). As a vibrant community of over 100 million people around the globe interested in supporting independent media, we encourage you to help us build a new distribution model for progressive artists.

“The Tunnel” has received significant attention from mainstream media around the world and was a hit at the A Night Of Horror Film Festival in March. It’s a classic horror film set amidst abandoned underground train tunnels beneath Sydney's CBD. In 2008, chasing rumours of a government cover-up and urban legends surrounding the sudden backflip, investigative journalist Natasha Warner led a crew of four into the underground labyrinth.
They went down into the tunnels looking for a story – until the story found them.

“The Tunnel” chronicles their harrowing ordeal. With unprecedented access to the recently declassified tapes the crew shot in the claustrophobic subway tunnels, as well as a series of candid interviews with the survivors, viewers come face to face with the terrifying truth.

This never before seen footage takes viewers deep inside the tunnels bringing the darkness to life and capturing the raw fear that threatens to tear the crew apart, leaving each one of them fighting for their lives.
Get ready to see it next week! If you like it, buy the DVD for exclusive extras and more.

Chrysalis Beta – Personal Content Channels Now Live

by BitTorrent on May 12, 2011 in Announcements with 31 Comments

Just released…the first beta of the new BitTorrent software, code-named Project Chrysalis! We’re excited to debut the next evolution of our upcoming client and extend the functionality from the Alpha client launched in March.

In addition to our continued redesign of the user interface and easy access to artist spotlight content, the biggest change is the addition of a new feature: personal content channels. Now, you will be able to easily send all of those massive files you’ve created – for example smartphone videos and hi-res pictures – to all of your friends and family directly from your BitTorrent software.

Quick steps to get started:

1. Install the beta client (please remember, this is a beta, so we appreciate your patience with any kinks you may come across).

2. Click the arrow link in the upper right corner of the top carousel bar to create a channel.

3. A screen will appear that helps you customize the channel, including creating a graphic icon that will appear in your channel bar.

4. Browse your hard drives to upload selected files to your channel.

5. BitTorrent automatically creates a customizable channel, which will appears as an (editable) icon in the top bar of the user interface.

6. From within the channel, you may invite more friends to join via email, click handy Twitter and Facebook icons, or generate a short link to use in email, IM, or post anywhere on the Web.

7. You may also post comments for channel members to see and reply.

What does the recipient receive?

1. When a recipient clicks the link in the invitation, an offer to download the software client with the channel pre-installed is presented. If they already have the Chrysalis beta installed, the channel will be added automatically to their channel bar.

2. From the channel, a recipient may directly download shared files and comment for all of the other recipients to see and reply.

Other quick facts:

- You may also upload multiple files to the channel over time and create a theme. For example, a soccer parent may create a team channel and add new videos throughout the soccer season. All videos would be available to invitees to download and discuss at their convenience.

- Since the number of channels you may create is virtually unlimited, you could also create a separate channel for family vacation photos and invite only family members.

- Channels are designed to be open and easily shared among social networks. If a channel link is inadvertently posted by the channel creator or a recipient, creators may delete the file and it will no longer be available from the BitTorrent channel.

- While channels are intended for invitees, please remember that once any file is posted on the Internet, it may appear elsewhere and people should take special care when posting personal content to the Internet.

- During beta trials, BitTorrent’s personal content channels feature has no file size limits and is free.

- The beta is English only, and is compatible with Microsoft Windows running Internet Explorer 8.

We’ve posted a handy FAQ in case you have any further questions. If you come across any kinks, please report them in the Chrysalis forum. Additional details are also available in the press release.

Give it a try, and please let us know what you think. And thank you for participating in our beta testing and helping us create the best experience possible.

- Catherine

New Episodes! Zenith and Pioneer One Shine on BitTorrent

by minimau5 on May 5, 2011 in Featured Content with No comments

Zenith - A Film by AnonymousBack in March we released Part One of the “retro-futuristic steampunk thriller” Zenith, acclaimed by both audiences and critics and downloaded over 35,000 times. Thanks to your great support with donations (haven’t donated? Do so now!) we are pretty jazzed to find out what happens in Part Two – now live and easily available App Studio (or download the torrent file here).

Zenith is set in the hellish future of 2044 where human beings have become stupefied by the state of permanent happiness they’ve been genetically altered to experience until our hero Jack offers relief via drugs that bring the welcome experience of pain.

WAIT, A NEW EPISODE OF PIONEER ONE TOO?

Pioneer One Episode FourThe beloved series also released a new episode today in our App Studio. Pioneer One Episode Four continues the story of the serialized drama produced and distributed online through VODO.

Episode 4 continues the political sci-fci thriller’s story of a mysterious capsule that has entered the Earth’s atmosphere only to be found to house a live human being in a Soviet space suit. The only clue is a note in Russian that claims the man is the child of cosmonauts living at a base on Mars.

Pioneer One has over 2,000,000 million downloads and is a winner for Best Drama Pilot at the 2010 New York Television Festival. The show is also completely financed by viewer donations, so show your support to these progressive filmmakers here.

Download Episode 4 or catch all episodes of Pioneer One by in the App Studio.

More and more artists are embracing the BitTorrent community. Thank you for showing your support! More releases and apps coming soon so be sure to check back often.