Damiana Kryygi
Directed by Alejandro Fernández Mouján
Synopsis
The year is 1896. In the Paraguayan forest, a three-year-old Aché girl survives the massacre of her family by white settlers. She is baptised ‘Damiana’ by her captors. At the age of 14, she is committed to a mental institution, where she is photographed naked shortly before dying of tuberculosis. After her death, her body becomes an object of scientific interest, with studies taking place in La Plata and Berlin. Using extant photographs and anthropological records, this film reconstructs Damiana’s story and accompanies the Aché community in their effort to recover the girl’s remains and lay her to rest in the land of her ancestors.
Read an interview with the director:
SCREENING FOLLOWED BY Q&A WITH ANTHROPOLOGIST (CONSULTANT FOR THE FILM) SUSANA MARGULIES
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