Documentary of (De)Colonization

Ex-Pajé (2018) as Border-Filmmaking and Paiter Suruí Re-existence

  • Samuel Johnson University of Miami
Keywords: Indigenous Studies, Amazon Rainforest, Ethnocide, Coloniality, Docufiction

Abstract

This essay examines the linkage of epistemological inequities, social and ecological devastation, and ethnocide in the Ex-Pajé. This hybrid docudrama provides a vision of contemporary colonial encounters in the 21st century Amazon Rainforest through a mix of loosely connected fictional narratives, improvised scenes, and documentary footage. Ex-pajé is the product of a collaborative filmmaking effort between writer-director Luiz Bolognesi, “ex-pajé” Perpera Suruí, and members of the Paiter Suruí community. Bolognesi crafts a harsh critique of evangelism and the epistemicide confronted by indigenous communities of the Americas since the late 15th century. With Perpera Suruí as protagonist, this film visually and narratively reframes the colonial encounter from the perspective of an “ex-shaman” providing a meditative and visceral portrayal of coloniality that underscores the need for collaborative story making that centers resistance to the violences of the Modern/Colonial age.

Published
2022-08-29
Section
Articles