Documentary Educational Resources - Subject / Food Ways & Subsistence / Hunting & Gathering / All Films

Climbing the Peach Palm

Thu, 30 Aug 2018 08:16:00 GMT

Climbing the Peach Palm
Buy Now: $545.00

The ingenuity of Yanomamö technology is revealed in the climbing frame used to scale the spiny trunk of the peach palm tree. Here a young man collects the fruit for his in-laws by means of two frames, each constructed of two crisscrossed poles. As he perches on one frame, he raises (or lowers) the other, onto which he carefully steps, continuing in this manner up (or down) the entire tree.

Climbing the Peach Palm was restored by DER with funding from the National Film Preservation Foundation.

This film is included on the Yanomamö Shorts compilation DVD. This two-disc set includes the following remastered titles on Disc One: Arrow Game, Children's Magical Death, Climbing the Peach Palm, A Father Washes His Children, A Man and His Wife Make a Hammock and Weeding the Garden. Also included on Disc One: Firewood, Tapir Distribution and Tug-of-War. Disc Two includes: Dedeheiwä Rests in His Garden, Children Roasting Meat, A Woman Spins, Children Make a Toy Hammock, Sand Play, Playing in the Rain, Mouth Wrestling, and Young Shaman.

Films in the Yanomamö series:

Arrow Game *†

The Ax Fight †

Bride Service

Children's Magical Death *†

Climbing the Peach Palm *†

A Father Washes His Children *†

The Feast

Firewood *

Jaguar, a Yanomamö Twin Cycle Myth

Magical Death †

A Man and His Wife Make a Hammock *†

A Man Called Bee: Studying the Yanomamö †

Moonblood: A Yanomamö Creation Myth †

Myth of Naro, as told by Dedeheiwä

Myth of Naro, as told by Kaobawä

New Tribes Mission

Ocamo is My Town

Tapir Distribution *

Tug-of-War, Yanomamö *

Weeding the Garden *†

Yanomamö: A Multidisciplinary Study

Yanomamö of the Orinoco

* included on the Yanomamö Shorts compilation
† included in the Yanomamö Films: Remastered, Vol. 1 set

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Cree Hunters of Mistassini

Thu, 30 Aug 2018 08:16:00 GMT

Cree Hunters of Mistassini
Buy Now: $320.00

For thousands of years, the Cree Indians of James Bay inhabited the northern Quebec forests - originally gathering wild rice, and later hunting, fishing, and trapping. Traditionally, small groups of families spent the winter months together in the bush, subsisting on moose, beaver, deer, wild geese and caribou. In 1973 a film crew joined three families in their annual move to the north. In this film we come to know the Blacksmiths, the Jollys, and the Voyageurs: building a one-room lodge floored with pine boughs, hunting, trapping, preparing food and skins, and living together in the bush.

Disclaimer on Naming:
Please be aware that this documentary may include outdated or potentially offensive language. Such terms are not endorsed by DER but are presented in their original context to promote awareness, education, and discussion. Learn more about DER’s efforts to use reparative language and honor the preferred names of Indigenous communities by clicking here.

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The Earth is Our Home

Thu, 30 Aug 2018 07:05:00 GMT

The Earth is Our Home
Buy Now: $295.00

This documentary about the early Natives of the Great Basin emphasizes the traditional culture of the last 5,000 years. The story unfolds through the words and skills of the older Paiute women of southeastern Oregon and northern Nevada. They tell us how they make cakes from berries, baskets from tulles, cord for nets...necessary daily tasks linked with an ancient heritage.

The earth is ever present in the film, wildlife, rivers and marshes, sagebrush desert, all part of the story. The lifeways of the Northern Paiutes are followed through a seasonal cycle, from root-gathering in spring to building shelter in winter. The Earth is Our Home is an important historical film about Native North Americans.

This film is excellent for classroom use from 6th grade to adult.

DER thanks Oregon Public Broadcasting for the opportunity to rescue fine archival films from obscurity.

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First Film

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 14:53:00 GMT

First Film
Buy Now: $340.00

First Film was edited and narrated by Lorna Marshall and is comprised of footage shot in 1951 on the second Marshall family expedition to the Kalahari Desert. It is intimate in style, very carefully filmed, with a wealth of practical information about the material culture and structure of Ju/'hoan (!Kung Bushmen) hunter-gatherer society. The film allows viewers to see some of John Marshall's earliest film footage and provides an interesting comparison with the more sophisticated shooting found in his later work.

This film is part of the !Kung Series.

Orthography Note
The group of people depicted in these films are the Ju/'hoansi, speakers of the Ju/'hoan language. Ju/'hoan is part of the !Kung language group; the term !Kung was previously used by the Marshall family and others to refer to Ju/'hoansi. Although the term is outdated, it has been retained here for the sake of consistency with John Marshall's previously published work. The films and their related printed materials also employ antiquated spellings of names and places. For current Ju/'hoan orthography, please see the Ju/'hoan - English Dictionary, compiled by Patrick Dickens and the Ju/'hoan Peoples Literacy Committee.

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Group Hunting on the Spring Ice

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 13:26:00 GMT

Group Hunting on the Spring Ice
Buy Now: $340.00

Group Hunting on the Spring Ice

Part 1 (34 min)

Late June, and much of the land is bare. There are sounds of running water, and melt ponds shine everywhere. The woman carries heather and moss to camp and the man makes a whirling bullroarer for the boy. Another child pretends to drive a dog sled. A woman is working sinews into bowstrings, while another is busy with a seal skin. A woman prepares to cook a meal and a man makes a bow from bone and sinews. It is a demanding task to combine such materials into a strong supple weapon; the result is pleasing to the man. The next day the men move out on the sea ice with a dog to look for seal pups.

Part 2 (28 min)

The men are out on the sea ice and the women work at the tasks of camp. Seal skins are pegged to dry in the sun and a woman, baby on her back, picks over a pile of gulls. The birds are skinned and then go into the pot with water from a melt pond. A baby sucks on a bone. The people eat, and then the women visit an old man in his tent. Now the women are out gathering moss for the fires and we see the birds and flowers common to the area. A woman skins a seal pup while another sews skins for a tent. The children play at making camp, and some of the older girls pretend to nurse the fat pups. Then the adults join the fun, playing at juggling.

Part 3 (33 min)

The men are moving about on the sea ice, probing for unsafe ice and watching for seals. The snow cover is nearly gone now, and the breathing holes have widened. The men sit and wait. One makes a strike with his harpoon and others come to watch. They are ready to eat and relish the good warm blood and the liver. Another hunter succeeds, and then another but this one loses his catch when his thong breaks and the seal slides back into the water. But the party has three seals in tow when they return to camp, and soon the women have the meat exposed and all eat. Then the blubber is packed into the sealskin bags and the men haul it away to the cache.

Films in the Netsilik series

At The Autumn River Camp
At The Caribou Crossing Place
At The Spring Sea Ice Camp
At The Winter Sea Ice Camp

Building a Kayak

Fishing at the Stone Weir

Group Hunting on the Spring Ice

Jigging for Lake Trout

Stalking Seal on the Spring Ice

About the Netsilik series

These films reveal the live reality of traditional Inuit lifebefore the European acculturation. The Netsilik of the Pelly Bay regionin the Canadian Arctic had long lived apart from other people and haddepended entirely on the land and their own ingenuity to sustain lifethrough the rigors of the Arctic year.

The filming was done during the summers of 1963 and 1964 and in the late winter of 1965 under the ethnographic direction of Dr. AsenBalikci of the University of Montréal, assisted by Guy Mary-Rousseliere, O.M.I., both anthropologists of wide Arctic experience. Quentin Brownwas Producer-Director, and Kevin Smith the Executive Producer for theseries. A minimum of cultural reconstruction was required during thefilming; the Netsilik families readily agreed to live in the old wayonce more and showed considerable aptitude in recalling and representing the earlier ways of life.

Note on Term "Eskimo":

The films in this series make use of the name "Eskimo." While once broadly applied, it is a perjorative term and considered offensive. While the inception of the word is a matter of debate, it is no longer used or applied in our film catalog. The context in which the term appears in this series is an acknowledged relic of a colonial past, presented in its original version. DER apologizes for any offense caused.

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Kinja Iakaha, A Day in the Village

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:13:00 GMT

Kinja Iakaha, A Day in the Village
Buy Now: $295.00

In A Day in the Village, Waimiri and Atroari filmmakers document the day-to-day life of their relatives in the Cacau village, located in the Amazon region. We watch as women prepare the midday meal and do laundry in the river. Men hunt for alligators, paca and tapir in the forest as well as make handcrafts during a rainstorm. Children play and help with chores such as fruit-gathering and fishing, with adults showing them the right way to do things. Through intimate, interwoven images, the video gives us a vivid sense of the daily pattern in this village.

Films in the Indigenous Video Makers series

Dancing with a Dog
From the Ikpeng Children to the World
Kinja Iakaha, A Day in the Village
The Living Forest
Moyngo
Nguné Elü
One Must Be Curious
A Path to Live
The Rainy Season
Shomõtsi
Trainees for the Future
Wapté Mnhõnõ, The Xavante's Initiation
Wai'á Rini, The Power of the Dream

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The !Kung San: Resettlement

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:13:00 GMT

The !Kung San: Resettlement
Buy Now: $295.00

In comparison to !Kung San: Traditional Life, this video shows some of the dramatic changes in life-style that Ju/'hoansi had experienced by 1986. No longer able to rely on hunting and gathering for subsistence, Ju/'hoansi collect mealie meal welfare, spend money earned from army jobs on alcohol and consumer goods, and live in a crowded area with increased fighting and illness. With a move back to traditional lands and development of cattle herding and subsistence agriculture, there is hope that Ju/'hoansi can be successful in a mixed economy.

Part of the !Kung Series.

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The !Kung San: Traditional Life

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:13:00 GMT

The !Kung San: Traditional Life
Buy Now: $295.00

This video depicts traditional Ju/'hoan life by using vignettes from longer films in the!Kung series. Footage selected shows tool-making technology, hunting and gathering, social life and children at play, and gives the viewer a feel for the vastness and beauty of the Nyae Nyae region of the Kalahari Desert.

Part of the !Kung Series.

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!Kung Bushmen Hunting Equipment

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:12:00 GMT

!Kung Bushmen Hunting Equipment
Buy Now: $320.00

This film shows in detail all the pieces in the Ju/'hoan hunting kit and how each piece is made and used, from the collection of the raw materials to the final fabrication, including the preparation of poison arrows.

!Kung Bushmen Hunting Equipment was shot by John Marshall between 1951 and 1953; it was edited by Frank Galvin under Lorna Marshall's direction.

This film is part of the !Kung series.

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On the Spring Ice

Tue, 28 Aug 2018 13:51:00 GMT

On the Spring Ice
Buy Now: $320.00

Walrus as well as whales are hunted by the Siberian Yupik of Gambell on St. Lawrence Island. As the film opens, an old man tells of the dangers of moving ice, how people used to drift on such ice and never return. A cluster of men stand on a snowy rooftop, scanning the sea ice for walrus, when one spots a skin boat in distress far out on the ice. The crew had not come home the night before, and now were drifting toward Siberia. Long ago, there was nothing that could have been done to save them. Today, the men call the Coast Guard.

The next day, preparations for another walrus hunt are made. The hunters load the boat and travel fifty miles out to sea, where they spot two walrus sunning themselves on an ice floe. "Don't move," one hunter tells the camera. The walrus are shot, admired, butchered on the ice, and loaded onto the boat. Back in the village, the meat is cut and hung to dry.

Films in the Alaska Native Heritage Film series:

At the Time of Whaling

The Drums of Winter (Uksuum Cauyai)

From the First People

Note on Term "Eskimo":

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