Roberto Romero Ribeiro Junior

ROBERTO RIBEIRO JUNIOR, an inedependent scholar from Belo Horizonte, Brazil, was awarded a Fejos Fellowship in Ethnographic Films to aid the filmmaking of “Y’g ‘tak: My Father, Kaiow’.” ‘Y’g ‘tak: My Father, Kaiow” is a documentary feature film about Sueli and Maiza Maxakali’s search for their father, Luis Kaiow’, who was separated from them during the military dictatorship in Brazil. The film follows Sueli and Maiza’s journey to reunite with their father after more than 40 years apart, as well as the struggles faced by indigenous peoples in contemporary Brazil, including land grabbing and environmental degradation. The film also showcases the vibrant and intense ritual life of the Tikm_’_n and Kaiow’ peoples, who continue to resist state violence and fight for their lands and cultures.