TRANSAMAZONIA

As a child, Rebecca (Helena Zengel) survived a plane crash deep in the Amazon – a miracle, people say, and her father, the missionary Lawrence Byrne (Jeremy Xido), has built a calling out of it. Years later, Rebecca is a faith healer whose growing fame finances the mission. When illegal loggers encroach on the land of the Indigenous people the mission wants to convert, her father manoeuvres his daughter into the centre of the escalating conflict. Rebecca begins to ask who she is and what in her story is true. “Transamazonia” by the South African director Pia Marais (Germany/France/Brazil/Switzerland/Taiwan, 2024) is loosely based on a true story.

In her fourth feature, Marais tells of faith, healing and exploitation in the rainforest, leaving the line between miracle and performance suspended. The film premiered in competition at Locarno 2024. It was shown at Around the World in 14 Films in Berlin in 2024, in the German Cinema section.

Shown at the 2024 edition of Around the World in 14 Films.

All films 2024 · Film Archive