Fifty years after a French filmmaker’s documentary about the Kuna people of Panama vanished, the Indigenous community has finally retrieved their story. In 1975, the Kuna people allowed their lives to be filmed, but never knew that production stopped and the film reels were taken by a bank.

Over the course of five decades, the community searched for the missing footage, which had evolved into a legend passed down through generations. Eventually, deteriorating reels were found in Panama’s Ministry of Culture and a concealed copy of the film was discovered in Paris. As elders recounted the experience of having their story filmed, a new generation emerged with the determination to reclaim their cultural narrative.

The Lost Film of Panama” is a documentary created by Andres Peyrot, which tells the story of the Kuna people’s journey to regain their stolen history and cultural heritage.

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/program/witness/2025/3/2/the-lost-film-of-panama-indigenous-kuna-reclaim-their-voice?traffic_source=rss