Synopsis
Long abandoned as a land without hope, Africa is crushed under the negative stereotypes that have condemned it to the periphery of civilization.
The Dancing Forest is Africa’s strident retaliation. Through the shining example of a small village in Togo, we find a community that refused to wait for outside aid to make its way out of poverty and ruin. With tools in hand, mixing traditional agricultural knowledge with modern techniques, its proud men and women stoop to build their own destiny and a model of self-reliance.
Amid the hectic and merciless stampede of capitalism, The Dancing Forest offers a quiet sanctuary in which to reflect on some of the many urgent questions facing mankind: How are we to address the inequities of the widening global divide between rich and poor? What hope is there for the 218 million sub-Saharan Africans who live in abject poverty?
What is the role of women in Africa’s survival? What are the ways to combat sky-rocketing food prices? How are we to define our economic relationship with the environment?
Opening our eyes and minds to an other way of rural development, The Dancing Forest takes us on a trip to a world where time, nature and everyday gestures still bear meaning. A world where forests can dance.
Through the noble gaze and profound testimony of the people of Baga, we are educated and inspired and shown that beyond pain and survival is a lasting dignity, freedom and hope.
