Footsteps in Africa: A Nomadic Journey

Director Kathi von Koerber dedicates Footsteps in Africa to “the preservation of all nomadic tribes of the Sahara and worldwide.” Instead of taking the usual ethnographic documentary approach with onscreen text providing specifics, von Koerber opts for impressions, offering stylized inter-titles with messages such as “This space is the desert, the Sahara, where one sees far” and “Nomads are people who don't need permission to move,” which serve more to set the scene than provide context. Trancelike music, 16mm images, and photographic stills are combined with comments from tribal members and others. Speakers include a Koranic teacher, Tuareg elder, desert guide, music festival director, and singer-guitarist, while performers on the soundtrack range from Jimi Hendrix (“The Wind Cries Mary”) to the Tuareg group Tinariwen. The filmmaker also roams through villages where men herd livestock and make tea, women sing and sew, and children gaze in curiosity at the Westerners (most of these sequences are wordless). Von Koerber clearly intends Footsteps in Africa to stand as a tribute to nomadic peoples, but the lack of concrete information will bother some viewers, although others looking for an experience rather than an education may feel otherwise. DVD extras include extended interviews and photo slideshows. Recommended, with reservations. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)