David-Pierre Fila

In the equatorial forest of Congo Brazzaville and the Central African Republic pygmies live. Over-exploitation and waste of resources have had a significant impact on the lives of Pygmies. The story is based on Mangala an old and wise voice of these disappearing people.

Forest dwellers pound drums upholding rituals while urbanites cry "Progress!" More plunder the land's riches but newly defiant ones shout back.

The time it takes to travel through a city, the time for encounters, the time for space and silence, the time for words forgotten and letters sent too late. Travel is always a matter of memory… A documentary by David Pierre Fila.

Gustave, a 26-year-old man from Congo, has spent a year in Senegal for his work. On his return he hears that his cousin Sidonie has died. He hurries to the wake, but what he finds upsets him greatly. Gossip and secrecy dominate the mood. Gustave wants to track down the mysterious truth behind the death of his young and attractive cousin, who was one of the 'liberated' women of Brazzaville. Should he seek the truth in their youth, when they were inseparable as children? And when Sidonie once saved him from drowning in the Congo river? They had planned to marry, but Sidonie left for Europe to study and Gustave went to Dakar to study architecture. In his quest, Gustave comes into contact with Céline, a friend from Gabon, and Alphonsine, Sidonie's young sister. But the event remains a mystery.