The cinematic and compassionate camera conveys an intimate and sensual experience of the indigenous life on Mentawai with its beauty and vulnerability. Two shamans are the main characters in the film, hunter-gatherers in a culture predating even traditions of weaving or pottery, archaic traditions with their own complexity.

The film portrays daily life of the indigenous tribe, their spiritual cosmos and their commitment to preserving their own culture and natural habitat. Logging companies threaten the fragile eco-system of the islands.

Rare historic footage and archive materials tell the story of decades of oppression of the indigenous culture – but also of the resilience of our main characters and the last tribes living in the jungle. The main character, Aman Laulau had been a leader in this struggle for decades, meeting the governor on Sumatra in a key point of history.

The latter part of the film explores the geopolitical context and shows a new generation joining our main characters in the fight for the preservation of both their environment and culture – as part of a larger movement in Indonesia.

A film by Joo Peter

Produced by Cinemate & Joo Peter Studio
In collaboration with Martison Siritoitet, Indigenous Education Foundation, Ilona Grundmann Filmproduktion
International sales: CLPB Rights

Festivals

Awards:

Special Award of the Jury – Balinale 2022 (Bali)
Mount Everest Award for Best Feature Documentary – International Film Festival Nepal 2023 (Kathmandu, Nepal)
Best Asian Feature Documentary Film – Quetzalcoatl Indigenous Film Festival 2023 (Mexico)
Best Documentary Film Sound – FICIMAD – 2023 (Madrid, Spain)
Best Feature Documentary Film – Druk International Film Festival 2023 (Buthan)
Best Documentary Feauture Film – High Tatras International Film Festival 2023 (Slovakia)
Best Documentary Feature Film – Palanque International Film Festival 2023 (Chiapas, Mexico)

Selections:

Liberation Doc Festival Bangladesh, 2023
International Film Festival Transcending Borders, Paris, France 2023
Cannes Film Awards, 2023
Festival International du Film Ethnographique du Québec, 2023
12th International Cambodian Film Festival, 2023
Babul Eco Film Festival Hyderabad, India, 2023
Blue Water Film Festival, San Diego, California, 2023
7th Portoviejo Film Festival Ecuadaor, 2023
Montevideo Film Festival, Uruguay, 2023
Naturvision Filmfestival Ludwigsburg, 2023
International Ethnographic Film Festival Ilinden Days, Macedonia, 2023
Green Montenegro International Film Festival, 2023
Supbatdeul Mountain Village Film Festival for Co-Existance and Equality, South Korea, 2023
El Festival Ecuatoriano Turicine (FECT) Quito Ecuador, 2023 (Finalist)
El Cine Suma Paz Film Festival of Environmental Culture and Culture of Peace, Colombia, 2023
Palanque International Film Festival, Chiapa, Palenque Site Museum Alberto Ruz Lhuillier, Carretera Zona Arqueológica Maya)
KKIFF Kota Kinabalu International Film Festival, Sarawak, Malaysia, Borneo, 2023
Dili International Film Festival (DIFF), Timor Leste, Palapasu, 2023
California Capital International Documentary Film Festival in Sacramento, California, 2023
Wairoa Maori Film Festival, Nuhaka, New Zealand, 2023 (postponed to 2024)
InkaFest Mountain Film Festival, Arequipa, Peru, 2023
El Festival de Cine Independiente de Sogamoso – FECISO, Colombia, 2023
15th International Kuala Lumpur Eco Film Fest, KLEFF, Kuala Lumpur Malaysia, 2023
Green Screen International Environmental Film Festival, Trinidad, Tobago, 2023
El Ojo Cojo – International Film Festial in Madrid, Spain, 2023
Festival International du Film Amazigh d’Agadir (FINIFA), Marocco, 2023
Festival Internacional de Cine Animal y Ambiental, FICAA Ciudad de México, 2023
Korea International Etnographic Film Festival (KIEFF), 2023