by Dov Kornits
In feature documentary The Territory, the climate crisis is exposed through the film’s focus on Brazil’s Uru-eu-wau-wau community, indigenous people living in the Amazon, whose homes and existence is increasingly threatened through forest clearing and enterprising farmers emboldened by the Bolsonaro government.
American filmmaker Alex Pritz engaged with the Uru-eu-wau-wau people when making his documentary, which won the Audience Award along with a Special Jury Award at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year.
Executive Producer Txai Suruí, a young Indigenous activist from the Amazon – whose activist mother Neidinha Banderira features centrally in the film – was recently in Australia to promote the release of The Territory, which is produced by Darren Aronofsky.
“I watched the first cut of the film, and they considered what I thought, and the film is about our work too,” Txai says about the importance of engaging with First Nations people when telling their stories.
“I don’t know too much about the Indigenous people here,” she admits about Australia. “But I know that we are facing the same things; the colonization never ended! Not in Brazil, and not in any other place in the world. The world needs to understand the importance of Indigenous people; our forest is essential to have climate balance and that means our future.
“I think that people don’t know what’s going on, the damage, not only in Australia, but not in European countries or USA, and in Brazil too!” Txai says about the importance of The Territory getting made and for it to be released around the world. “I was in Sao Paul and the people really didn’t know. The people think that deforestation, the fires, is about trees, but it’s about our lives. And I think that the film has a power that you can realise that ‘they are real people, they cry like us, they fall in love like us, they are sad, happy’, and you can understand our fight, you can understand that they are killing us!
“I hope that the film can show and have a big impact to start talking about the supply chain, deforestation, human rights, climate change… we are bringing this conversation with The Territory.”
The Territory is playing across limited cinemas from now, with private group bookings also available. More info available at: theterritoryanz.com
