• Director(s):

    Molia (Agnès), MIRGUET (OLIVIER)

  • Producer(s):

    TOURNEZ S'IL VOUS PLAIT, ARTE FRANCE

  • Territories:

    Worldwide.

  • Production year:

    2019

  • Language(s):

    German, English, French

  • Rights:

    TV, DVD, NON-THEATRICAL, INTERNET, VOD

In the heart of the Amazon rainforests of Brazil, the Sateré-Mawé people have a rite of passage to adulthood where a show of bravery turns boys into men.

Some 20 years ago, Sergio left his tribe to study in the city. This year, he is returning to the community with his son Jackson, aged 12. It is time for the young boy to join the ranks of the Sateré-Mawé. To earn this status, Jackson must suffer the worst the jungle has to offer – the ritual of Da Tucandeira: Placing his hand inside a glove woven with hundreds of bullet ants whose venom is said to be the most painful in the world.
 
According to tribe members, this painful initiation prepares the young men for life and proves they are capable of fulfilling their reproduction obligations. The boys must endure the ordeal 20 times in their lives. For the Sateré-Mawé, virility is demonstrated through one’s resistance to pain, with no tears and no weakness.