Synopsis
70% of Ecuador’s Amazon, home to some 12 tribes, has been divided into oil blocks, polluting one of the most biodiverse rainforests of the planet. Only one small tribe, the Waorani, have successfully fought to keep oil off most of their land. Now, Ecuador has started to auction off the Waorani’s last virgin rainforest to the international oil industry. Filming over four years, Spears from all Sides follows the young, charismatic Waorani activist Opi as he tells the dramatic story of a vehement, community-based resistance in one of the most remote and beautiful areas of the world.
A word from Tënk
Spears From All Sides is a beautiful and infuriating documentary that shows how the past continues to shape the present. In this case, the reality of the Waroani peoples in Ecuador, regarding their territory, in particular to stop the extraction of oil from their lands, and for some of the native Indigenous Amazonian subgroups, the Toñampare and Tagaeri, their right to remain contactless from the government and outside world.
The documentary explores how repeatedly over time the Ecuadorian government and different global oil companies have made promises to the Waroani, only to have them continuously fall short. The film offers an emotionally charged call to respect Indigenous land rights and subtly presents the only solution to end ongoing colonialism is for the Waroani to be the defenders of their territory and future. One of my favourite recent environmental documentaries, the film presents over a variety of scenes, how the Waroani are not waiting for others to solve the problem for them, nor that they are confident in the commitments others make, at the same time showing how different communities within the ethnic group hold a variety of views as to what is the best way forward. Despite the varied opinions, collectively they will walk together in finding ways to protect their land and culture for generations to come.
Amy Miller
Filmmaker and producer
