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About RAI Film
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Film Festival 2025
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RAI FILM
Login
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About
About RAI Film
Meet the team
Prices
Film Distribution
Watch on demand
Ethnographic Film Catalogue
Teaching resources
RAI Film Festival
About RAI Film Festival
Film Festival 2025
Film Festival 2025 Group passes
Film Festival prizes and awards
Film Conference 2025
Archive of past editions
Menu
About
About RAI Film
Meet the team
Prices
Film Distribution
Watch on demand
Ethnographic Film Catalogue
Teaching resources
RAI Film Festival
About RAI Film Festival
Film Festival 2025
Film Festival 2025 Group passes
Film Festival prizes and awards
Film Conference 2025
Archive of past editions
Login
Facebook
Instagram
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Films
found one film
Series
“0”
x
Country of production
“United States”
x
Year of production
“1963”
x
films with a digital version
1
short films
1
Region
West Africa
1
Country
Nigeria
1
Keywords
Health / Health care / Healing
1
Possession
1
Ritual
1
Directors
Prince, Raymond
1
Speed, Frank
1
Series
not set
1
x
Country of production
Nigeria
1
United States
1
x
Year of production
1963
1
x
Film
Were Ni! He is a Madman
1963
30
‘
Directed by
Frank Speed
Raymond Prince
.
This ethnopsychiatric film shows the management of psychiatric disorders by the Yoruba of Nigeria. There are two basic types of institutions to deal with psychiatric disorders. First there are treatment centres managed by herbalists and diviners with specialist knowledge of traditional psychiatric therapy. Second there are cult groups that provide a setting for the expression of otherwise socially unacceptable behaviour through ‘possession’ and masquerade dances. The film shows a number of aspects of both types of institution, including sequences of male Gelede masqueraders and women of the Egun possession cult. In spite of the diversity of ethno‑medical practices which are portrayed, the film has been criticised for not drawing sufficient distinction between major and minor forms of healing. R.G. Armstrong, 1967. Review of the film. American Anthropologist, Vol.69, p.426. P.C. Lloyd, 1965. ‘The Yoruba of Nigeria’. In J.L. Gibbs (ed.), Peoples of Africa. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York. (General ethnographic material on the Yoruba.) R. Prince (ed.), 1968. Trance and Possession States. Proceedings of the Second Annual Conference, R.M. Bucke Memorial Society, Montreal. A. Seronde, 1975. Review of the film. American Anthropologist, Vol‑77, pp.181-182.
West Africa
Health / Health care / Healing
Ritual
Possession