Short films 1: Presences

According to indigenous peoples, territory is not seen as somewhere that’s separate from humans but rather as a single ecological system where both the human and non-human are integrated within a single cosmos. This selection of short films shows a type of relationship with the beings that populate the territory and influence daily life: spirits, spectres, non-human inhabitants, presences in and threats to the territory. Although they’re not always visible, they make their presence felt in various ways and cinema helps us to see them and get to know them.

 

Shinye jenay, Jointly directed by the Escuela Audiovisual Tabanok (Fundación Alpasamay, Colombia, Ese Ejja people, 2023, 2', Original language)

A hummingbird sent by a spirit manages to reach the heart of the Sun. There, it finds a seed, which it carries with its beak to the Earth and sows it next to a lake. Corn sprouts from it and, with it, a Kamëntšá couple.

 

Tsunki Aumatsamu, Jointly directed by the Laboratorio Etsa-Nantu (Cámara-Shuar, Ecuador, Shuar people, 2014, 16', Original language with Catalan and Spanish subtitles)

The myth of Tsunki tells the story of the origin of the Shuar: A man and his daughter survive the flood caused by Tsunki, the water spirit. Together they will found the new Shuar generation.

 

Mãri hi - A árvore do sonho (Mãri hi – The Dream Tree), Morzaniel Iramari (Aruac Filmes, Brazil, Yanomami people, 2023, 17', Original language with Catalan subtitles)

When the flowers of the Mãri tree bloom, dreams arise. The words of a great shaman lead to an oneiric experience through the synergy between cinema and the Yanomami dream. A film that presents the poetry and teachings of the peoples of the forest.

 

Waklichishka, Enoc Merino and Boloh Miranda (TAWNA Collective, Ecuador, Kichwa people, 2024, 5', Original language with Catalan subtitles)

This short film tells the story of a warmipangui (a term that identifies the Amazonian LGTBIQ community) who lives in isolation in the depths of the Amazon region. An unexpected encounter with an injured animal changes his destiny and that of his community. An intimate, profound story that explores the relationship between identity, territory and survival.

 

Sha'á, Peregrino Shanocua Chaeta (Sociedad Peruana de Derecho Ambiental and If Not Us Then Who?, Peru, Ese Ejja people, 2023, 3', Original language with Catalan subtitles)

Sha'á explains, from a very personal point of view, the journey of Peregrino, a young indigenous director who fights to protect his territory from illegal mining but who finds himself totally unprotected by the Peruvian state. Peregrino shows how it’s not always possible to continue the struggle when it starts to endanger the individual.

 

Session presented by Adrià Febrer from the alterNativa and IndiFest team. Subsequent conversation with Juan Francisco Valdez, anthropologist and documentary filmmaker, in person, and connected online, Priscila Tapajowara, photographer and filmmaker.