Film list

[be-jam-be-the-never-ending-song--Film-image]
BE' JAM BE the never ending song 2017 85'
    Directed by Cyprien Ponson Caroline Parietti .
In Sarawak (Borneo), “the ones who live upstream” are the first affected by deforestation. The Penan, (ex) nomadic hunters, must figure out how to go on living when one’s entire world is being
[barbara-and-her-friends-in-candombleland--Film-image]
Barbara and Her Friends in Candombleland 1997 52'
    Directed by Sylvie Timbert Carmen Opipari .
In the divine Afro Brazilian cult Candomble is an initiation religion centred around possession. The filmmakers concentrate on children who introduce and guide us to this world. The children play
South America Children / Young people Dance / Theatre / Performance Possession Ritual
[bariz-paris-street-camp-days--Film-image]
Bariz (Paris) Street Camp Days 2020 69'
    Werbner Award Directed by Nicolas Jaoul .
Summer 2015. La Chapelle neighbourhood, Paris. Hundreds of exiled people from East Africa survive on the streets, chased violently by the police, yet seeking to defend their rights as asylum seekers.
[the-bride-of-the-nile--Film-image]
The Bride of the Nile 2015 63'
    RAI Basil Wright Directed by Edouard Mills-Affif .
A secluded village in the Nile Delta, a traditional Egyptian family. A drama of tragic proportions is being played out. Like millions of young girls throughout the world, Heba must marry a man that
[confluences-emerillon-of-french-guiana--Film-image]
Confluences - Emerillon of French Guiana 2007 78'
    Directed by Perle Møhl .
Like self-fulfilling prophecies, scientific reports have hitherto depicted the Emerillon of French Guiana as cultureless and doomed to disappear. With this film, an anthropologist proposes to defy
South America Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Everyday Life
[gods-and-satans--Film-image]
Gods and Satans 2005 87'
    Directed by Martine Journet Gérard Nougarol Gabriel Chabanier .
Among the Wana people, semi nomads from the Indonesian (Sulawesi) forest, Indo Pino is a shaman recognized by everybody. Her nephew, who is also a shaman’s son, converted to Christianity some
South-East Asia Religion / Belief / Faith Shamans and Shamanism Inter-religious relations
[the-guardian-of-the-forces--Film-image]
The Guardian of the Forces 1991 52'
    Directed by Anne Laure Folly .
'The Guardian of the Forces' introduces the viewer to the world of Sikavi, a ‘fetish priest’ in Lome, Togo. He controls the spirits of several voodoos or gods. The film explores the significance
West Africa Health / Health care / Healing Possession Ritual
[guru-a-hijra-family--Film-image]
Guru, a Hijra Family 2016 75'
  Directed by Laurie Colson Axelle Le Dauphin .
Guru documents the work and daily life of a family of hijras in a small village in the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India. Silky, Mahima, Trisha, Durga, Kuyili, Priyanka, Vasundhara and Yamuna,
[indo-pino--Film-image]
Indo Pino 2002 84'
    Directed by Martine Journet Gérard Nougarol Gabriel Chabamier .
The small ethnic group of the Wana Wewaju live in Indonesia in the eastern part of Sulawesi (Celebes Island) among the dense equatorial rain forest of the Tokkala Mountains. The film documents the
South-East Asia Shamans and Shamanism Health / Health care / Healing
[land-lot-s7--Film-image]
Land Lot S7 2020 28'
  Directed by Abtin Sarabi .
Following sugar cane field workers in Senegal as they chop and burn their way through seemingly endless fields, this poetic film takes an unconventional approach to understanding the gruelling work
West Africa Labour Agriculture / Farming
[letter-to-the-dead--Film-image]
Letter to the Dead 2002 62'
    Directed by Andre Iteanu Eytan Kapon .
The film is about the encounter between tradition and modernity. In a small village of Papua New Guinea three exceptional men rival with each other in the field of rituals and artistic creation in
Melanesia Social Change Art / Artists / Artisans Death
[master-feng-taoist-monk-in-china-today--Film-image]
MASTER FENG, TAOIST MONK IN CHINA TODAY 2018 72'
    Directed by Adeline HERROU .
This ethnographical film paints the portrait of a Taoist monk in central China. Forced to return to a lay life during the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), he was sent to work in the fields for 15th
[midnight-ramblers--Film-image]
Midnight Ramblers 2017 57'
    Directed by Julian Ballester .
Night after night, Kye, Tobie, Paul, Kim and Tattoo wander through the streets and alleys of Montreal. They support each other, and they are all drug users. It is their only way of escaping a harsh
[my-eyes-as-a-stranger--Film-image]
My Eyes as a Stranger 1984 53'
  Directed by Toni de Bromhead .
This film tells the story of the friendship between an English filmmaker and Nicola, a Sicilian ex-gangster who lives in Florence. The film moves to and fro between a street of ill repute, and the
South-East Europe Gender Role and Identity
[a-new-era--Film-image]
A New Era 2019 71'
    Werbner Award Directed by Boris Svartzman .
In 2008, local authorities evicted 2,000 villagers from Guanzhou, a river island in Southern China, to make way for new urban planning projects. In spite of the demolition of their houses and police
Central Asia and Far East Urban Development projects Infrastructure\transport Land rights Resettlement
[nobody-dies-here--Film-image]
Nobody Dies Here 2016 23'
  Directed by Simon Panay .
Perma gold mine, Benin. Some dream to find something, others realized there was nothing to be found. Some dig relentlessly hoping to become rich, others died in the process. And a few of them say that here, nobody dies.
[other-fire--Film-image]
OTHER FIRE 2017 21'
    Directed by Guilherme Moura Fagundes .
A sensorial record of affinity and enmity relationships with fire in the conservation of the Cerrado biome. In the company is locals, hired to act as brigadiers and, more recently, as management
[the-people-of-the-wind--Film-image]
The People of the Wind 2015 59'
  Directed by Abtin Sarabi .
On the coast of the Persian Gulf, in the south of Iran, a ritual called Zâr is still practised today. This musical exorcism is said to heal all ‘victims of the wind.’ According to this popular,
[the-poets-salary--Film-image]
The Poet's Salary 2008 59'
  Directed by Eric Wittersheim Alexandre Francois .
For the first time in many years, on the little island of Motalava in Vanuatu, a new song will be composed in the island's ancestors’ language, the language of god Quat, and become part of the
Melanesia Music / Ethnomusicology Linguistics / Language Informant-researcher relationship
[processes--Film-image]
Processes 2016 23'
    Directed by Adriana Ferrarese .
Like every year, Corigliano Calabro, a small village in the south of Italy, celebrates Easter: from the investiture of a man to embody Jesus during a night procession, to the passionate debates for
South-East Europe Religion / Belief / Faith Festivals / Carnival
[promenade--Film-image]
Promenade 2016 31'
    RAI Basil Wright Directed by Philip Cartelli .
Recorded during two years but organized around a single day, “Promenade” observes a series of movements and interactions on a renovated section of the Marseille waterfront. During the day a cast
[remake-of-a-summer--Film-image]
Remake of a summer 2017 96'
    Directed by Magali Bragard Séverine Enjolras .
During a summer in Paris and it’s suburbs, two young directors attempt a remake of "Chroniques d’un été", fifty years after the cult film of Rouch and Morin. An offbeat portrait of
[sangharsh-strife--Film-image]
Sangharsh. Strife. 2018 105'
    Directed by Nicolas Jaoul .
Shot between 1997 and 2001, Sangharsh takes us deep into the lifeworld of Dalit Panther activists in the late 1990s Uttar Pradesh. By following three activists, one is taken on a rough trip in the
[the-sky-wept-for-forty-days--Film-image]
The Sky Wept for Forty Days 2022 62'
    Werbner Award Directed by Sabrina Mervin .
The Sky Wept for Forty Days is an immersion in a Shi’a pilgrimage, which once a year attracts millions of faithful to Karbala, in Iraq. Their journey, on foot, lasts at least three days. They reach
[a-thousand-fires--Film-image]
A Thousand Fires 2021 90'
    Main Competition Directed by Saeed Taji Farouky .
Parents Htwe Tin and Thein Shwe work hard to give their children a better future, their lives governed by a web of karma and astrology. All their hopes are pinned on their youngest son – Zin Ko
[travel--Film-image]
Travel 2016 63'
    Special Interest Directed by Nick Mai .
(This version of the film is edited using a single screen. For the split screen version see 'Travel - double screen version'). Joy left Nigeria to help her family after her father’s death. She
Western Europe Sex / Sexuality Labour Migration Ethnofiction Informant-researcher relationship Reflexivity
[travel-double-screen--Film-image]
Travel (double screen) 2016 63'
  Directed by Nick Mai .
(This version of the film uses a split-screen device throughout. For the single screen version see 'Travel'). Joy left Nigeria to help her family after her father’s death. She knew that she was
Western Europe Sex / Sexuality Labour Migration Ethnofiction Reflexivity
[vivre-riche--Film-image]
Vivre Riche 2017 53'
    RAI Basil Wright Directed by Joël Akafou .
“Rolex the Portuguese” has returned to Abidjan with one mission: to make lots of money. He seeks to emulates the hedonistic lifestyle of a new generation of West African music stars. He and his
[when-the-sea-sends-forth-a-forest--Film-image]
When the Sea Sends Forth a Forest 2020 21'
    Shorts Directed by Guangli LIU .
The story revolves around the memory of a Chinese survivor of the Khmer Rouge. This tragedy, which took the lives of two million people, continues to reshape our present. This forgotten moment of