Dance to the Spirits
Director Ricardo Íscar
Countries Spain
Duration 79 min
Synopsis
This film is a creative documentary shot in Nsola, an Evuzok village in the the south Cameroon jungle. To the Evuzok there are two kinds of diseases that require different treatments: the «natural» ones and the ones from the night world, caused by sorcery. This is the story of Mba Owona Pierre the ngengang, the «healer». He handles the sicknesses that come from the night world where spirits live and attack his people. He’s the anti-sorcerer; he has a special gift and a responsibility towards his fellow villagers. The dance to the spirits is his most important healing ritual. We also filmed the village in his daily life. These sequences represent the day world in which life goes on peacefully. We see Pierre practicing his treatments and writing down his thoughts about modernity, religion or medicine. We’ve got the portrait of an extraordinary character and a tribute to Evuzok culture.
This film is a creative documentary shot in Nsola, an Evuzok village in the the south Cameroon jungle. To the Evuzok there are two kinds of diseases that require different treatments: the «natural» ones and the ones from the night world, caused by sorcery. This is the story of Mba Owona Pierre the ngengang, the «healer». He handles the sicknesses that come from the night world where spirits live and attack his people. He’s the anti-sorcerer; he has a special gift and a responsibility towards his fellow villagers. The dance to the spirits is his most important healing ritual. We also filmed the village in his daily life. These sequences represent the day world in which life goes on peacefully. We see Pierre practicing his treatments and writing down his thoughts about modernity, religion or medicine. We’ve got the portrait of an extraordinary character and a tribute to Evuzok culture.