The Flight of The Crocodile – Ruy Cinatti’s Timor

Movie · 1h 12m

Starring Cláudia Castelo, Joana Matos Frias, Joaquim Manuel Magalhães, Lúcio Manuel Gomes de Sousa

“I am totally in love with Timor!”, said the Portuguese poet, anthropologist and agronomist Ruy Cinatti upon arriving on the island. From 1946 to 1974, he led a nomadic experiment, building a lasting relationship with Timor-Leste’s people and territory. The cultural identity he sought to protect is threatened by colonial oppression and the decline of the Portuguese Empire. Rejecting these circumstances, Cinatti reaches out to the people and its tribes, documenting rituals, filming, photographing and even making blood oaths with tribal chiefs to gain access to sacred places and become a Timorese.