29.-30.1.2010
INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF MOVIES
WITH ANTHROPOLOGICAL THEMES

GÁJ

Česká republika, 2009, 37 min
Pavel Borecký
30.01.2010 17:00

Documentary mosaic about Czech fellow-countrymen living in a small Serbien village. 90 years ago, family Frič desired a change. They left the rough life at mountainous Banat - the Southern promontory of Rumenien Karpats - and moved to more fertile lowlands stretching along impressive Danube. Soon the others followed.
Nowadays, melody after melody is wafting from Írovič's orchard. Their son is practicing playing the harmonica. Next competition is coming soon. What does his talent mean for the Czech minority?
Gaya Czechs are the last compact social group which settled down at Serbien Banat. Eventhough they do not need to drag themselves way up the hills to reach their fields, they remind to be a minority in comparison with pure Czech Gernik.
How has this change in the course of decades influenced upcoming generations?

Language of dialogues: Czech

THE FUTURE OF VISUAL ANTHROPOLOGY

Germany, 2006, 15 min
Martin Gruber
30.01.2010 22:05

In the summer of 2001 the IWF in Göttingen hosted the conference »Origins of Visual Anthropology – Putting the Past Together«. Important representatives of the field came together to discuss the history of the subdiscipline. Three students were equally interested in their visions about »The Future of Visual Anthropology«. They conducted brief interviews concerning this question with filmmakers and scholars such as Jean Rouch, Ian Dunlop, Paul Henley, Karl Heider, Howard Morphy, Peter Crawford, Harald Prins and Jay Ruby.

»The Future of Visual Anthrolopogy« presents the common themes that were touched upon during these conversations by juxtaposing different perspectives. The film is a reflection on how people talk and think about the future, present and past of Visual Antrhropology in 2001.

Language of dialogues: English, French
Language of subtitles: English

DRUGS AND PRAYERS - INDIAN PSYCHIATRY IN THE REALM OF SAINTS

Germany/India, 2009, 57 min
Helene Basu
30.01.2010 18:25

The Sufi shrine of Mira Datar in India is large pilgrimage centre specialising in healing possession madness/mental illness. Recently, it has also become a site of experimenting with new forms of community care in the mental health sector. The NGO „Altruist“ facilitates communication between the mental health department, shrine dignitaries, psychiatrists and patients suffering from diverse kinds of mental troubles who seek help from the saint. Under the heading of „Dava and Dua“  Altruists promotes psychiatric services at the shrine parallel to the cures of possession illnesses offered by ritual specialists. The film documents interactions between different actors at the shrine (patients-psychiatrists, psychiatrists-ritual specialists, patients-ritual specialists), listens to the stories of afflicted persons and presents diverse views on the presumed causes of mental illness as well on the benefit or non-benefit of medicine and/or ritual practices as perceived by patients and their relatives.

Language of dialogues: Hindi and Gujarati
Language of subtitles: English