"People are basically good—when provided a tool that helps them do good in the world, they prove it.
Jelly is a new company and product named after the jellyfish. We are inspired by this particular animal because neurologically, its brain is more “we” than “me.” Also, for the past 700 million years, this decentralized structure has been wildly successful.
News of Jelly emerged unexpectedly early so I’ll wait a bit to share more about the team. In the meantime, I’ll say this. Jelly will be for everybody, it will be developed first and foremost for mobile devices, and it will be free. But, it won’t be ready for a while.
Personally, Jelly will command my full attention aside from some advisory roles elsewhere. The company is self-funded for now. Our offices are based in San Francisco. We are hiring, but Jelly is in no rush to be a big company any time soon."
Biz Stone, Co-Founder and CEO
Jelly Industries, Inc.
San Francisco, CA
Biz Stone was one of the founders of Twitter. His new technology innovation firm Jelly HQ recently closed their Series A funding, accumulating partnerships with Spark Capital and SV Angel. They also announced individual investors, stating, “We’re also proud to announce a group of committed individual investors who share our optimistic worldview and believe in our vision.”
Jelly chose their individual investors partly because they operate in diverse fields. Founder Biz Stone (@bi
z) explains, “Knowledge diversity is something we prize highly and is also something that will be represented in our product.” Stone, who also co-founded Twitter, is keeping the project under wraps for the time being. However, he says, “As mobile devices have taken an increasingly central role in our lives, humanity has grown more connected than ever—herein lies massive opportunity. With this capital raise, Jelly has the means to hire more great talent and continue building what we think of as the natural next step for our connected society. We will share more about Jelly from a product perspective when we move beyond early prototyping.”
Investors include Jack Dorsey (@jack), the co-founder and CEO of Square (and another Twitter alum), musician and activist Bono (@bono) and politician, Reid Hoffman of LinkedIn, and Nobel Laureate Al Gore (@algore). Also included among the individual investors is #TIME100 Influencer and Women's 
Annex's Roya Mahboob.
Finally, Stone extended a hearty thank-you to the individual investors. He says,
“I'd like to extend special gratitude to the individual investors who have committed to Jelly. Jack Dorsey, Bono, Reid Hoffman, Steven Johnson, Evan Williams, Jason Goldman, Al Gore, Greg Yaitanes, and Roya Mahboob. Your participation is both validation and inspiration.”
Learn more and get the full list of individual Jelly investors.
An animated video by Tomas Schats showcases what Afghan children can do with Examer, an educational and interactive social networking platform.
The film shows how students can talk with each other, post about their accomplishments, receive a reward, and then broadcast their projects across the world in multiple languages. The video is listed on film distribution company Film Annex’s page about inspirational films by Film Annex productions and friends.
Examer was developed and founded by Citadel of New York, which connects students to each other in developing countries in Central Asia like Afghanistan, and also in Saint Lucia in the Caribbean in order to improve their online and philanthropy skills. Examer is easily tailored to regional languages and cultures. Students are able to follow a “Social Media and SEO” curriculum to learn about writing and distribution via social media. The platform also uses a micro scholarship payment system in order to teach children how to write blogs and other online content and be paid for it depending o
n the content and student’s success.
Examer was developed by Afghan entrepreneur Roya Mahboob, Fereshteh Forough, and Elaha Mahboob through Afghan Citadel Software Company, as well as Film Annex’s CEO Francesco Rulli and a collection of American and European software engineers. Citadel of New York provides Examer license free to Women's Annex and other non-profit organizations. Schats has also provided illustrations for the Internet classrooms that Afghan Citadel Software Company helped to establish in Afghan high schools.
Captain Edward Zellem, a U.S. Navy Captain in the U.S. Navy, recently had an abstract accepted for the 7th Annual 7th Interdisciplinary Colloquium on Proverbs.
Zellem has been in the news lately for his work in Afghanistan, specifically his collection, translation, and presentation of Afghan proverbs in order to bridge cultures. The colloquium is part of the International Association of Paremiology, which is a nonprofit institution dedicated to the international scientific study of worldwide proverbs. Zellem is also a member of the association.
Zellem commented about his plans surrounding the colloquium. He said:
"I plan to come back from Portugal in November with a whole platoon of Proverbs experts from around the world, including Central and South Asia. I want to show them that the cutting-edge work of Film Annex and The Afghan Development Project can create new models for what I call 'Inbound Paremiology' and 'Sustainable Paremiology' that can benefit not only the academic sector, but also the business and philanthropic sectors."
This year’s colloquium will occur Nov. 3 – 10 in Portugal, where the association is based. The title of Zellem’s abstract is “Crowdsourcing Afghan Proverbs: Exploring the Paremiological Minimum Using 21st Century Social Media.” The presentation pulls on Zellem’s “Proverbs Project” from when he was deployed in Afghanistan in 2010-2011. Zellem had collected Afghan proverbs in order to show how they demonstrate a common humanity, and to share the proverb’s deep meanings, lyricism, and richness with the rest of the world.
From this experience, Zellem authored two bilingual collections of Afghan proverbs, "Afghan Proverbs Illustrated" and "Zarbul Masalha: 151 Afghan Dari Proverbs." Dari is one of the main languages of Afghanistan. After the success from the books, people began requesting copies printed in Pashto, the other major language in the country, because of the significant ethnolinguistic differences between the two languages concerning the proverb translations. This has resulted in a second round of proverb acquisition called “The Pashto Proverbs Project.”
According to his abstract, Zellem will “explore the methodology, techniques, challenges and opportunities of ‘crowdsourcing’ paremiography in developing countries by using the Internet and mobile phones.” Companies like Film Annex and Afghan Citadel Software Company have helped to broaden crowdsourcing and ease of access to information because of Internet pools constructed throughout Afghanistan. The companies then use these classrooms to teach students and specifically women how to use financial and social media platforms. The more people who gain access to computers and mobile phones, the more Zellem is able to access domestic proverbs.
This video represents Film Annex President/Founder Francesco Rulli's vision of a new and improved Herat combined with the spoken word poetry that was composed of Afghan proverbs by Edward Zellem.
By presenting a series of images from the city of Herat in Afghanistan and New York, the video shows many differences and similarities between the two landscapes. As you keep watching, the architecture of these two cities on the opposite sides of the world merge into one.
Seek knowledge from cradle to grave.
Ze gahwaara taa guhr, daanesh bejoye.
Mother shakes the cradle with one hand and the world with the other hand.
Maadar ba yak dast gahwaara wa ba dast-e degar jahaan-ra takaan mey-dehad.
You to me, me to you.
Tu ba ma, ma ba tu.
Respect to others is respect to yourself.
Ehteraam ba digaraan, ehteraam ba khod ast.
Eat well, dress well, life is short.
Khoob be-push, khoob bukhor, zendagee ko-tah ast.
A sword wound will heal, but not a wound form words.
Zakhme shamsher jour mey-sha, zakhme zabaan na.
Different heads, different dreams
Har kalaa, ber khiyal.
Everyone should be looked at with the same eye.
Hama-raa ba yak chashm negaah kuneed.
The world is alive with hope.
Doon-ya baa omeed zenda ast.
Visit the Women's Annex Corporate page and the Women's Annex Web TV for more information.
Music by Mpex - iPhado
Follow this link for more information.
In a recent video, LinkedIn.com celebrates its 10th anniversary by thanking its users who have large connections and by sharing inspirational stories.
LinkedIn, a social media platform that’s mission was to provide networking connections to professionals across the world, was established in 2003. For its 10th anniversary, it asked some of its users what they intend to accomplish in the near future. The video showcases clips from mini-interviews with specific entrepreneurs or professionals, as well as scenes from their various jobs. The video’s intent is to remind users to always build toward their aspirations.
In the video, Jason Mayden, the senior global design director for Nike’s Brand Jordan, comments about how LinkedIn enables him to pursue his dreams. He says:
“I want to be the voice for the underserved creative youth of the world. I grew up on the south side of Chicago and so the options for careers are very narrow. I wanted to be in a career that allowed me to stay connected to kids like me. And the easiest conversation I could have with any kid around the world is: ‘I like your shoes.’”
Other comments in this video include following students to guide them through life, commenting on blogs, make connections with admired professionals, networking with people in the same field in order to save the world.
One person in the particular who wants to save the world is a featured marine biologist in the video. She says:
“I’m going to save the ocean. I know I can’t do it on my own, but to be a part of it is something very gratifying. One person can reach such a broader audience—you have a whole network of people.”
Michael Sweeney, a managing partner of Film Annex Capital Partners LLC, was thanked by LinkedIn in an email that mentions his 783 connections. One of FACP’s platforms is film distribution site Film Annex, which provides a similar platform by connecting artists and content creators with potential investors and worldwide audiences. In addition, FACP works with companies like Afghan Citadel Software Company to build Internet classrooms in Afghanistan for children and women, specifically. His work has positioned him and his companies to be thought leaders in social fields.
Watch the full video here.
In a recent video on Wistia.com, Jay Gould from Foundville listens to various success stories from startup entrepreneurs.
Foundville is an organization that interviews founders of successful startup companies via online video chats. It then posts those videos online in order to share those stories with entrepreneurs who may need a source of inspiration. The videos teach those entrepreneurs not only what they can achieve, but also what to do and what to avoid.
All of the featured entrepreneurs believe that Foundville’s mission is beneficial to businesspeople who are just beginning their careers and/or companies. One of the hurdles a startup company must overcome is finances. Often, it is difficult to spread a company’s name to potential investors and employees.
In the video, Jameson Hsu, co-founder of San Francisco-based Mochi Media, says that he admires Foundville for what it’s doing. Mochi Media was founded in 2004, raised $14 million, and was acquired for $80 million in 2010.
He states:
“There’s a lot of people out there who aren’t in San Francisco and don’t have access to these entrepreneurs, these people, and you’re helping inspire so many people around the world. I admire you for doing that and I think it’s something that people need.”
Other founders featured in the video comment that it’s beneficial for entrepreneurs to tell stories in order for other people to learn. They view the act of storytelling as a way of paying it forward and helping other companies.
In the video, Co-founder of Userplane Mike Jones admits that he likes telling his stories to other entrepreneurs and seeing how his lessons help others in turn. Userplane was founded in 2001, hadn’t raised anything on its own and was acquired for $40 million in 2006. He says:
“I love sharing my entrepreneur experiences. I’m very open about them, I’m open about my lessons, I’m open about guidance. My hope is that any of the knowledge that I can share with people will help their process and make them become more successful. That’s what I want to see happen.”
Similar to Foundville’s goal, film distribution company Film Annex also strives to spread awareness of artists and businesspeople. Through its WebTV pages and profiles, artists are able to reach audiences worldwide in order to gain attention and investments that allow them to continue producing content.
Watch the full video here.
A recent online video at Film Annex updates the Afghan Development Project's mission and accomplishments, and the people who took the initiative to create the project. The Afghan Development Project is currently managed by the Afghan women of Women's Annex and Citadel of New York.
The Afghan Development Project began in March 2012 when it was co-founded by Roya Mahboob and Film Annex's CEO Francesco Rulli. The goal is to build 40 Internet Classrooms in high schools around Herat, Afghanistan. Ten classrooms have been built or are in process as of May 2013. The Afghan Development Project uses Examer, which is an interactive and educational social networking platform that was created by Citadel of New York. Examer incorporates a Micro Scholarship Payment System that currently connects over 25,000 Afghan children to the world via the Internet. By using Examer in the Internet Classrooms, women and young students learn how to use the Internet and social media platforms.
The video quickly summarizes Mahboob’s history, as well as how many students were connected to the Internet at individual schools thanks to the Afghan Development Project. According to the video, the goal is to have 40 schools connected by 400 computers for at least 160,000 students, plus an additional 260,000 inhabitants at the Women’s Annex Center.
The goal is to build an independent financial foundation for women and students, and to “show the world the new faces of Afghanistan,” according to Mahboob in the video.
In addition, Francesco Rulli expands the project’s immediate goals in the video by saying:
“Now it’s time for us to take the cables, connect the computers, and make the children—who use the computers—very good programmers and developers so that the country itself can benefit from the investment.”
The first half of the Afghan Development Project’s equation is Afghan entrepreneur Roya Mahboob, co-founder and CEO of Afghan Citadel Software Company along with Fereshteh 
Forough. Mahboob was recently honored as a "TIME 100 Pioneer" in April 2013 for her work with ACSC and Women’s Annex, a social platform that empowers women through vlogs, blogs, and other online resources to help them become financially independent.
The second half of the project’s equation is film distribution company Film Annex's, a platform that enables artists and other content creators to gain audiences and financial resources to support their artistic endeavors.
Follow this link for more information.
“We believe that beauty is a wise weapon,” states a woman in a voiceover in this inspirational video explaining the 10,000 Balloons project. This artistic endeavor aims to blanket Kabul in a sea of bright pink balloons, each filled with a message of hope. Supporters are able to purchase balloons for $1 each - balloons that will then make their way to Kabul on Monday, May 18th.
The 10,000 Balloons initiative was developed by Yazmany Arboleda, a New York City-based 
multimedia artist. This “living sculpture” has happened in India, Kenya and Japan, and is now set to come to Kabul. Artists, dancers and other volunteers will “disrupt” the typical Monday morning commute in order to create a beautiful “living fabric”.
The project is also being supported by Film Annex. Founder Francesco Rulli has already been heavily involved in Afghanistan through the creation of Womens Annex (formerly the Afghan Development Project). Arboleda says, “We are incredibly excited to be collaborating with the Film Annex community. Their work to empower women throughout Afghanistan by giving them the skills and opportunity to lead better lives is paramount. By teaching women to create video content they are giving them the tools to express their creativity and this very much falls in line with the mission of the We Believe In Balloons campaign. Our end goal is to create space for self-expression through the arts in Kabul and throughout Afghanistan.”
In New York City on May 6, 2013, Film Annex participated in the 10,000 Balloons Pop-Up event.
Purchase a balloon for the 10,000 Balloons project.
View the original video.
Michael Sweeney of Target Marketing Annex recently interviewed Fereshteh Forough, Film Annex’s Liason to Central and South Asia, about strong women in technology. Forough cites Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and author of “Lean In” and Roya Mahboob, recent honoree in the Time 100, an annual list of the world’s most influential people.
In fact, Sandberg penned the writeup of Mahboob in the issue, discussing how Mahboob is 
changing the landscape of technology for women in Afghanistan. Sandberg explains, “Most public access to the Internet in Afghanistan is restricted to urban Internet cafés, which are often uncomfortable or unsafe places for women. That doesn’t work for Mahboob — so she is building 40 free Internet-enabled classrooms across Afghanistan to allow more than 160,000 female students to connect to the world. She also founded a multilingual blog and video site to give these women a platform for telling their stories. Nearly 300 female student bloggers have posted on the site, making themselves heard and changing the way the world sees Afghanistan … and how Afghan girls and women see themselves.”
Forough points out that Mahboob and Sandberg share a unique niche, since they’re both women working in technology. She says,
“I did an episode of An Afghan Perspective on Sheryl Sandberg. For me, just finding women who are really influential and really important, especially in IT, it’s really good to see women. Right now, if you look at IT, it’s mainly male-dominated. Finding women like Sheryl Sandberg is really impressive.”
She points out that it’s inspirational to connect women in the same industry around the world. Mahboob and Sandberg have plans to meet and discuss women in technology in the upcoming weeks.
Forough also explains that, thanks to Mahboob’s influence and success, the Women’s Annex project (formerly the Afghan Development Project) has grown substantially. “When we look back at the project we have started, we can see that we’ve had very huge growth. Our target is 40 schools, covering 160,000 students,” says Forough. However, she points out that Mahboob’s recent success could help them expand the program beyond Afghanistan and into other countries in Central Asia. She says, “Everybody is interested to see where this project is going and what will be the impact.”
View the original video.
We crafted a new logo for "Target Thinking", and this new article on the TIME website is a good way to kick it off how we use "strategic positioning".
For businesses, connecting with influential bloggers is seen as a win-win. They get to pay less for word-of-mouth marketing and bloggers get free swag, travel or sometimes even cash. For traditional blogger endorsement deals, bloggers need to disclose any perks, freebies or money they’ve made from the company they’re endorsing. The article explains how some companies are skirting these rules with “independent” endorsements.
Author Brad Tuttle explains, “There is a simple two-step approach to establishing 
such relationships:
- Locate people who love your brand and hold influence in the social media world; and
- Give these people even more reason to love your brand, so that they’ll use their influence to somehow help promote that brand.” He cites Chipotle and Target as two brands that have followed this strategy.
Chipotle was able to garner mentions from professional athletes by sending them “free burrito” cards that give them a free burrito each day. The trick was that Chipotle only offered these cards to professional athletes that already had a social following and had posted about Chipotle in the past. Rather than seeking out just anybody to officially endorse them, they sought out these unofficial endorsements by people who already love their brand.
Target’s Inner Circle program is another example of unofficial and “independent” endorsements. Simply put, Target found a number of bloggers who had already professed a love for Target, then invited them to join this exclusive group of influential bloggers. Target says they are looking for “authenticity” and that the bloggers are “absolutely free to write what they see.” However, one of the bloggers told press, “I have a borderline obsessive love for Target.”
Amy Mascott, a blogger in the Inner Circle program explained that as long as they abide by FTC guidelines for bloggers and disclose their relationship with readers, she doesn’t see any problems with these types of programs. She says of Target, “Obviously they’d hope that we would share the experience, and many of us wanted to, but Target never put pressure on us to do so. One thing I appreciate about the program is the complete openness and its stress-free nature.”
Of course, for social media experts, particularly bloggers, sponsorship deals of any type may pose a risk. Readers can get turned off by too much promotional content, and most are not afraid to be vocal about how they feel. Mascott says there are many questions she considers before taking on a sponsor, including “Will readers stick around and continue as loyal subscribers? How many brand relationships is too many? How many sponsored posts vs. un-sponsored posts?” For some bloggers, striking the right balance can make the difference between a lucrative blog and a virtual ghost town.
Read the original article.
Today’s filmmakers have more opportunities than ever, thanks to sites like Film Annex. Online film financing is the latest area for burgeoning filmmakers to seek out cash to create more films. In fact, Film Annex has recently acquired the domain OnlineFilmFinance.com to help filmmakers find more opportunities to get financing.
The domain forwards to the Eren’s Pick landing page on Film Annex, which is how many of the site’s talented filmmakers earn the bulk of their revenue. Eren’s Picks helps some of Film Annex’s most talented filmmakers get more exposure, increasing their ability to get online film financing. Filmmakers get onto Eren’s Picks when they are good at promoting their films and have influence on Film Annex. Eren’s Picks is a curated list of influential filmmakers that changes over time.
Eren Gulfidan is the person behind Eren’s Picks. As the Creative Director at Film Annex, she works closely with the site’s founder, Francesco Rulli, and also works with filmmakers on their projects. She’s also in charge of Film Annex’s online film finance program.
Filmmakers who sign up for Film Annex are participating in one of the most unique and revolutionary online film financing methods on the Internet. Unlike other sites, Film Annex only accepts professional film content. Unlike other video sites, no amateur content is allowed. This makes the site valuable for advertisers, who place pre-roll advertisements before each film. Revenue from these ads is split 50/50 between Film Annex and the filmmakers. This ensures that the creator of the film continues to get revenues via online film financing for years to come. It’s a sustainable model that helps filmmakers get the online film finance they need to succeed.
Learn more about online film finance.