Category: Earth
The Native Spirit Film festival began on Tuesday 12th October with some traditional Maori Haka dancing from the based Ngāti Rānana London Māori Club, who wore traditional dresses to sing the indigenous songs of New Zealand. Girls looked like gorgeous whispering mermaids whilst the boys flexed their muscles.
Ngāti Rānana London Māori Club.
Afterwards a series of films told us stories of the mistreatment of indigenous people, from the stealing of water in Chile to the oil wars of Colombia… where 'campesinos' (farmers and country workers) are exploited in the pursuit of profit for big companies. But there was also laughter, with lighthearted animations and Aussie musical comedy and drawing animations. And this was just the start of this ten day festival!
The Native Spirit Foundation promotes understanding, preservation and education both about and for indigenous communities around the world. It is directed by the Mapuche community artist and filmmaker, Freddy Treuquil, from Chile. This is the 4th annual festival to be held in London, and features the visions of filmmakers, artists and volunteers from all over the world. It is hoped that the Native Spirit Festival will promote a unified vision of life on Mother Earth.
Make sure you get along to enjoy the rest of the festival, which runs until Friday 22nd October. We all need more awareness of indigenous people to understand better our world. To see the full program of the festival please visit the website here.
All photos courtesy of Native Spirit Foundation.