Portrait of Eva Toulouze, a polyglot ethnologist and fennougrist who also works as a translator and lecturer.

Journey Home

"The Land of Love" is a documentary film about reindeer, oil, politics and poetry. It tells a story about Yuri Vella, a Forest Nenets reindeer herder and poet who lives in the taiga of Western Siberia, and who tries to prove that one person can stand against the great power that is destroying the environment of the native people.

The Land of Love

The Vumba Hills in central Mozambique, close to the Zimbabwe border, are the kingdom of Mambo (Chief) Chirara. The Mambo’s leading position is acknowledged by the government, and in addition to being the region's most important spiritual leader, the Mambo has the right to hold court cases that deal with minor crimes, problems involving spirits and domestic affairs. He is assisted by several subchiefs and ritual leaders. In the northernmost corner of the Mambo’s kingdom, Mbuya Gondo, an over 70-years-old woman, is a spiritual medium. She often holds ceremonies at a well-known rock drawing site. Mambo Chirara is not pleased with the old lady's activities. In his opinion, Mbuya Gondo acts too independently and demands too much money for carrying out the ceremonies. In the film, gender issues and local politics are brought to the surface as we follow these two leaders during a period of preparing for and performing the annual rainmaking rituals.