Nothing but the Sun with Arami Ullón

In this episode, we feature a conversation with the esteemed Director Arami Ullón about her latest film Apenas El Sol (Nothing but the Sun) which was selected as the opening film at IDFA this year. NOTHING BUT THE SUN is set in the Paraguayan Chaco region, a semi arid region in Paraguay with very low population density that is being rapidly deforested. It is also the home of the Ayoreo, an indigenous people that have been colonized by missionaries.  The film’s central protagonist is Mateo Sobode Chiqueno, who traverses the Chaco recording the voices of other Ayoreo who, like him, were born in the vast forest, free and nomadic, without any contact with white civilization, until religious missionaries forced them to abandon their ancestral territory, their means of subsistence, their beliefs, and their home.  Through Mateo, we are invited to listen to the stories, songs, and testimonies of the Ayoreo people as he attempts to preserve fragments of a disappearing culture. The entire film is an act of care, in which Ullón offers a dignified and honest representation of the Ayoreo people, not only as victims of the harsh and brutal colonial practices, but as complete men and women, owners of words and acts and ideas of their own, and of unique knowledge that we can all learn from. Mariana Cadenas moderates the conversation. For show notes, visit docsinorbit.com and be sure to follow us on social media @docsinorbit