Fifo: decolonizing Oceania thanks to documentaries

Text by: Julien Sartre

Until Sunday February 9, 2020 is held in Papeete, in French Polynesia, the International Oceanian Documentary Film Festival (Fifo). The “impact documentary”, as it is practiced in the South Pacific, has already helped to lift taboos on the consequences of nuclear tests, the post-colonial wars in Papua New Guinea, violence against women or the poor development of certain archipelagos.

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From our correspondent in Papeete,

For the inaugural press conference of the festival, directors, authors and members of the jury had given an appointment Monday, February 3 on the seafront of Papeete - Tahiti, French Polynesia-, under a banyan tree. A choice which owes nothing to chance since in Oceania, the tradition wants that one cannot lie when one is under one of these immense trees with the aerial roots.

Truth is a crucial issue at the International Oceanic Documentary Film Festival (Fifo), which takes place all week, until Sunday, February 9. Eric Barbier, the president of the jury for this 17th edition of Fifo, takes the opportunity to present his fiction feature film Petit Pays . The latter is inspired by Gaël Faye's book on Burundi in the 1990s war, but the filmmaker wishes to specify that he had " a documentary approach, essential to evoke the echo of the Rwandan genocide in this country at the beginning of the civil war ”.

This responsibility is assumed both by the organizers and by the authors and directors who participate in the event. " What is called" the impact documentary "has existed for over ten years in Anglo-Saxon countries and France is just starting to hang up the cars, " reveals Khadija Benouataf, author and co-organizer of Fifo. “ The committed documentary has always existed, but this is something different : the impact documentary is theorized as such with the implementation of strategies to produce effects, campaigns organized in this direction and sometimes even a particular reflection on the impact of the film from the moment of its writing. The author-directors reflect from the start on what their film will be able to bring and how it will be a tool for struggle and social or environmental change, on the ground . ”

Presented in competition this year at Fifo, Maya Newell's film In my blood it runs is an excellent example of this type of documentary committed to the extreme. It tells the story and the fight of a young Australian aboriginal, healer in his traditional world, exposed to a school system designed by and for whites. When it is projected in Australia, during 2020, it will benefit from a whole communication campaign aimed at influencing the design of school programs on the island continent.

A little further in the South Pacific, the film Bombardées , signed Florence d'Arthuys, recounts the difficult daily life of Kanak women confronted with the violence of men. " In New Caledonia, as incredible as it may seem, this subject has never been tackled head-on on the screen when it is a real scourge," says the director. There are a lot of Melanesians in my film, but other ethnic groups are also affected. We made this film so that the others speak, so that they leave, so that they denounce this violence ! ".

The film Bombardées by Florence d'Arthuys, recounts the difficult daily life of Kanak women faced with the violence of men. Fifo organization

Extremely sensitive and heavy themes are sometimes tackled during Fifo and produce concrete effects throughout Oceania. Maïna Sage, MP for French Polynesia at the National Assembly in Paris, believes that it is “ first of all a window on the Pacific for the inhabitants of Oceania, in order to allow them above all to learn more about themselves, about ourselves. Fifo has played a big role in raising awareness of the nuclear fact . Between 1966 and 1977, French nuclear tests were the cause of 193 shots in the Tuamotu archipelago. " It is a way for the population to put words into situations that are very difficult to tackle," continues Maïna Sage. Besides, this does not necessarily concern the French trials : there have been revelations about the trials in the Marshall Islands. Some explosions took place within fifteen kilometers of inhabited islands. Sharing this information with others in the Pacific is very important. There is still a lot to learn, to understand . ”

From decolonization questions to those of environmental preservation, the subjects tackled at Fifo are as engaged as they are diverse. The winner will see his film broadcast by the entire France Télévisions public network and will benefit from invaluable lighting in Oceania. Enough to say to Eric Barbier, the president of the jury that this is where the strength of impact documentaries: " maybe not change the world, but leave a trace for future generations, so that the world whole can remember how people lived, how they suffered, how they were happy. In this regard, Fifo has a very big responsibility in Oceania . ”

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FIFO in Tahiti and FIPA in Biarritz, two documentary film festivals from January 26 to 31, 2010