Muzungu

In the Kilimanjaro area the life of a boy, a young adult and an old blind man intersect amidst cultural and climate changes.

"There are very few words in this film by Ben Donateo and Michel Zylberberg, but they all count. Firstly, the title. In Kiswahili, one of the languages of Tanzania, muzungu means "a person who wanders aimlessly", but it is also used to designate a foreigner. Then comes a refrain, an invitation to travel back in time, accentuated by the grain of the Bolex and the Super 8 images: “A long time ago, we were people who grew up with animals”. Finally, a legend is told by the fireside, about a grandmother who turns into a hyena. There are three characters in the film – a boy, a young man and an elder – but the story seems to be told by a travelling goat, a close-up cow, chickens, puppies and, above all, the great lake, the bearer of life and hope, the dream of "Manyatta", the camp of the Moran people. This tale set at the foot of Kilimanjaro poses questions about place, migration and the link to the living world at a time of cultural and climatic change."
(Anne Delseth - Visions du Réel)

""Vor langer Zeit waren wir ein Volk, das mit Tieren aufwuchs." Die Tansania-Reise der Filmemacher Ben Donateo und Michel Zylberberg beginnt mit diesen Worten sowie wunderschönen Bildern. Aus der Sicht eines Kindes, eines jungen und eines älteren Mannes wird eine Reflexion über die Verbindung zur Erde, zu den Tieren und zum Leben über verschiedene Generationen hinweg gewoben."
(Visions du Réel)