Baka: People of the Rainforest

BIRDSONG

MAN SINGING

PANPIPE MUSIC

The heart of Africa.

Below the clouds lie the rainforests of south-east Cameroon,

home of the Baka.

MAN CONTINUES HUMMING

The Baka left camp this morning.

For the last three months, they have been on a journey through the forest,

hunting and gathering.

Travelling with the group is a family.

This story is about their life in the rainforest.

THEY TALK IN THEIR NATIVE LANGUAGE

BIRDSONG

Likano is Ali's father.

Ali is four years old.

His brother, Yeye, is eight.

Their mother, Deni, is in her early 20s.

Likano has been married before.

Now, at 40, he's the second oldest of all the men.

Not far away, the rest of Likano's village have settled

and are thinking of setting up camp for the night.

The three-month journey through the forest has been tiring.

Today's camp will be the last before the Baka reach home.

Within an hour or so, the frameworks are ready for roofing.

The shelters will only be used for a night or two,

but they're strong enough to keep out the heaviest storm.

It's always like this.

The women establish camp after a few hours' walk,

while the men look for food.

THEY GRUNT WITH EXERTION

Close by, Likano and the other men are breaking open a termite mound.

They're after winged termites,

which are gathered in the top of the mound.

The smoke is stopping the termites retreating underground.

They're not all edible.

The bites of the defending termites are painful.

The winged termites are plump and full of protein,

with a taste like raw egg.

Camps are always established within easy reach of rivers.

LAUGHTER

Many of the trees and vines of the forest contain poisons.

The Baka have an intimate knowledge of these plants

and how to use them.

The chemicals in these vines are Rotenones.

To release them, the creepers have to be beaten into a pulp.

SHOUTING

By rinsing the pulp into the fast-flowing water,

the chemicals are dispersed into the river.

The river flows into a small patch of savannah.

It's too wet for rainforest to grow here

and so these open areas are dominated by palms.

The chemicals which have dissolved into the river are not poisonous.

Instead, they deprive the fish of oxygen.

Unable to breathe, they float to the surface.

SHE SHRIEKS

SHE SHRIEKS

At the camp, the women are setting off to gather fruits.

It is only during the rainy season that the Baka come this far into the forest.

They've come in search of feki fruit.

Its seeds are rich in oil.

Every rainy season for thousands of years,

the Baka have come to collect fruit in this way.

It's almost the end of the rainy season

and much of the feki fruit has already been gathered.

Those fruits still left on the trees

are a rich source of food for gorillas.

To get at them, they will climb 30 metres or more into the canopy.

Adults like these can weigh 200 kilos.

These are the animals the Baka fear most in the forest.

Elephants also roam the forest here.

Many fruits like feki must pass through an elephant's stomach

to have a better chance of germinating.

Large mammals and large birds, like this giant hornbills,

give the rainforest here its special character.

They too are essential, dispersing the seeds which will become

the next generation of the forest.

Back at the camp, the women are already preparing the fruits.

THEY CHAT AMONGST THEMSELVES

The seeds are crushed to provide a precious oily paste.

This will be used for cooking in the months to come.

For centuries, the Baka have been called pygmies by the outside world.

It's a name they dislike.

Most of the people here are well under five feet fall

but in the forest, and to the Baka, their size is irrelevant.

MAMMAL CALLS OUT

The calls piercing the darkness are those of the tree hyrax.

A giant pangolin visits the same termite mound

that the Baka raided earlier in the day.

HE SINGS

CHILDREN BEGIN TO SING

RHYTHMIC CLAPPING

GROUP SINGING CONTINUES

HE HUMS PERCUSSIVELY

Such tales are only told deep in the forest.

They are important for the children's education.

THUNDER CLAPS

SHE LAUGHS

The dry season is beginning.

Ahead lie ten hours of walking before reaching home.

MAN MIMICS GORILLA SOUND

This was told to Likano by his father.

Knowledge of the forest is often handed down in this way.

HE REPEATS HIS FATHER

HE REPEATS HIS FATHER'S WORDS

HE MIMICS CHIMP

LAUGHTER

THEY SHRIEK AND LAUGH

LAUGHTER

LAUGHTER

Home is a permanent village still deep in the forest

and ten miles from the nearest mud road.

Deni and Likano share this village with 20 or so members of their extended family.

Here the local Konabembe villagers bring metal goods and clothes from the outside world.

These are traded with the Baka for meat from the forest,

and for occasional work on nearby Konabembe plantations.

Although they speak different languages,

they can easily understand each other.

The Baka have never been truly isolated

and have always relied on local villagers for non-forest goods.

But visits from the outside world are just a diversion

from a daily life still focussed on the forest.

As the dry season progresses, the Baka are becoming increasingly interested

in the activity of the honey bee.

Guards protect the entrance.

Returning bees are bringing information back

about the first flowers of the dry season.

In the darkness of the nest,

the dance of the arriving bee tells the others

exactly where to find the flowers.

From the interior of the nest, bees fly far across the canopy,

straight to the flowers.

Honey bees are the most important pollinators here.

From every corner of the forest,

nectar and pollen are carried back to the nest.

Here, pollen is stored.

Red from the feki fruit, yellow from the njaya.

The combs reflect the flowers in the forest.

Incoming nectar is given to house bees...

..who transform it into honey.

It is this honey that the Baka are now looking for.

To find the nest, Likano turns to the forest for help.

The honey prayer will sharpen his ability to see and hear the bees.

The forehead is the centre of luck.

BABY CRIES

Future hunters also need the help of the forest.

Deni is preparing a medicine from the heartwood of the ngele tree.

Sand is used as an abrasive to create a red paste.

It's to make Ali grow up big and strong.

ALI CRIES

Soap comes naturally from certain leaves.

Washing is important before applying the medicine.

It's important to look after children in the forest.

Illness and death can strike suddenly.

Many a child is lost in infancy.

DISTANT CHATTER AND LAUGHTER

Yusa has been treating this ulcerous sore on Batanga's leg

for a few days now.

Batanga is her grandson...

..and Babu, her son.

Yusa is renowned for her knowledge of forest medicines.

Likano often tells of how he married Deni.

His first wife left him but before she went, she chose Deni,

then a young girl, as her replacement.

Night can be a good time to look for honey.

Honey bees are active at the nest well before dawn.

The earliest foragers leave by the light of the full moon

in search of flowers high in the canopy.

The first bee has arrived.

Below, Likano and Babu have been waiting for the flowers to talk.

A tree talking is a tree humming with bees.

By listening to the sound of the retuning bees,

they can discover the direction of the nest.

The light of dawn reveals the site of the nest,

high in the canopy.

Two more men arrive from the village.

Mewunga is Likano's brother-in-law and he is to climb.

The nest is 40 metres above the forest floor.

Very few Baka would attempt a climb like this.

Mewunga is using a special vine to help him climb.

By cutting tiny foot-holds, he will slowly inch his way up the tree.

The climb will take several hours.

Not far from the village, a Golden Cat has killed an antelope.

The cat is elusive and seldom seen by the Baka.

The women left the village at dawn to come dam fishing.

LAUGHTER

It is only the women who fish in this way.

INDISTINCT CHATTERING

Below the dam, the remaining water is scooped further downstream.

Dams must be constantly reinforced.

Deni is several months pregnant

but it doesn't stop her working as hard as the other women.

As the water recedes, the fish retreat under rocks.

Many fish lie dormant during the dry season and have to be dug out

from deep in the mud below the banks of the river.

Hunger has driven the cat back to its kill.

Deni is teasing Malenge, her step-daughter,

about Babu, who wants to take her as his second wife.

The cat poses no real danger to the women,

but it's a relief when it's gone.

LAUGHTER

They are off to find out how the climb for honey is going.

BANGS ECHO

Mewunga is already some 30 metres above the forest floor.

In the nest, thousands of stinging bees

pose a serious threat to Mewunga's life.

Before he climbs any higher, he must have the protection

of a smoking bundle of leaves.

At this height, a single slip means death.

Last year, two men were killed climbing trees for honey.

BUZZING

Mewunga stuffs bark scrapings containing cyanide compounds

-into the nest...

-BUZZING

..followed by the smoking leaves.

This stuns the bees,

who in their panic, gorge themselves on honey

and become lethargic.

Mewunga is not stung once.

The nest has to be hacked open to get at the comb inside.

Mewunga is completely confident working at this height.

The honey basket has to be hauled over 40 metres.

SHOUTING

15 kilos of honey is lowered to the crowd below.

Honeyguides feed on beeswax and are never far away

when there's honey around.

Honey is the ultimate gift of the forest

and very little of it will return to the village.

HUMMING

EXCITED SHOUTING

The children have found a colony of roosting bats.

Malenge is Likano's daughter.

In the village, there's a row developing

between Likano, Malenge's father, and Babu,

who wants to take her as his second wife.

In the forest, the children have returned to their play village.

The children often catch mice as well as bats.

These are important extra sources of protein for them.

Likano is not well and will not let the matter rest.

As an elder of the village, Mode's feelings are respected.

LAUGHTER

SINGING

Honeybees have descended on

the scattered combs left from the honey climb.

BUZZING

All available honey is taken back to the shattered remnants of the nest.

Forest bees are often reluctant to desert a raided nest.

In time, this one will be completely rebuilt.

Other animals also take advantage of the spoils of the honey climb.

A honey badger is quick to seize such an opportunity.

Although it's quite capable of

tackling a bees' nest with its massive claws,

the honey badger readily scavenges on these combs left by the Baka.

DRUMMING

CHANTING

The fire dance.

Likano has now been feeling ill for some time.

The village is uniting in an effort to heal him.

SINGING

A machete is heated in the fire.

As the diviner rubs his foot on the red-hot machete,

there is a strong smell of burning flesh.

The healing heat is transferred to Likano's body.

SINGING

Even during the most serious ceremonies,

there is an undercurrent of irreverence.

SINGING AND DRUMMING

Away from the dance,

seeds from a struthanthus vine are being prepared.

They contain strong cardiac alkaloids.

Babu is preparing arrow poison from them.

Babu wants nothing to do with Likano and his illness.

BABU TALKS QUIETLY

Scrapings from this vine contain steroids.

Despite the problems with Likano, his wife Nabo remains loyal.

The shell of a giant snail is used to hold water which is

filtered through the scrapings of the vine on to the crushed seeds.

Sticky latex from a third plant binds it all together.

SINGING AND DRUMMING

SINGING AND DRUMMING

An elder continues to work on Likano with the hot machete.

SINGING AND DRUMMING

BABU TALKS QUIETLY

Flights for the arrows are made from dried leaves.

The quiver has been made from the skin of an antelope.

Babu will leave before dawn for the hunt.

BIRDS CHIRP

MONKEY CALLS

BIRD SINGS

HE WHISTLES

Babu is imitating the call of a crowned eagle

which preys on monkeys.

MONKEY CALLS

To protect his group, the male comes closer to investigate.

MONKEY CALLS

BIRD CALLS

MONKEY CALLS

BIRD CALLS

Babu's mother Yusa is well known for her cure for infertility.

This Konabembe woman has been unable to conceive

and has come for treatment.

Yusa has successfully treated friends of this woman in the past.

The medicine is from small plant called njaya.

Elsewhere in Africa, it is used to counter gonorrhoea.

The affair is getting out of hand.

Babu has long since given up on Malenge,

but Likano, irritable because of his health,

has now become obsessed by the idea that Babu has put a spell on him.

There is a strong fear of sorcery.

Often, an unexplained illness is put down to witchcraft.

Babu is going to take the truth drug to prove his innocence.

It will only kill the guilty.

Meanwhile, the women are working in Deni's plantation.

It is unusual for the Baka to grow their own bananas,

but it has given them more independence

from the local villagers who have traditionally supplied them.

Bananas have long been their staple source of starch.

WOMAN SINGS

Both Babu and the scandal are taken less seriously by Malenge.

Meanwhile, Babu has found a large Nbanda tree.

Its bark contains a number of poisons,

the source of the truth drug.

The Baka are convinced that if Babu is guilty,

he will die after taking the drug.

It will be some time before the effects of the drug are known.

THUNDER

Distant thunder signals the end of the dry season.

ANIMALS CALL

The storm has failed to push this old silverback gorilla out of the canopy.

He was ousted from his group and now lives a solitary life.

CHOPPING

In the local cocoa plantation,

the Baka men are working for the Konabembe women,

repaying the debt of the pots and pans.

While the men work, Ali and Yeye raid a lemon tree.

Jengi, the forest spirit, is coming.

The boys are bringing his robes to the village.

BOYS SING

The poison has made Babu quite ill.

It has taken him a long time to recover.

BOYS SING

The trauma of the scandal has deeply affected the Baka.

For the first time in many years,

Jengi, the most important of the forest spirits,

is called upon to calm the troubled village.

SINGING CONTINUES

For the next few weeks, Dengbe will live here

in his lair beyond the village,

where only the men and older boys may go.

Tonight, and every night for the next few weeks,

he will come out to dance with the village.

Deep in the forest, a woman is singing.

WOMAN SINGS

Her song casts a spell over the forest,

making it receptive to the hunt.

The hunt is for Dengbe -

his appetite for meat has to be satisfied.

BIRD CALLS

They're on the trail of an antelope.

MAN SHOUTS AND ANIMAL GROANS

The men have killed, and far away the women sense it.

WOMEN SING

The response seems to be intuitive -

they are too far away to have witnessed the kill.

The sounds are of Dengbe demanding to be fed.

Likano is still upset and cannot accept Babu's innocence.

Yeye is trying to calm things.

Her spitting blesses Likano.

She insists that he takes this sedative

made from the bark of a tree.

Outside, Dengbe has left his lair.

SCREAMING AND CHANTING

Dengbe talks by blinking his eyelids.

Babu interprets for the village.

Dengbe is often ferocious, especially towards women.

The men must protect them whenever he dances.

From behind the safety of the barrier of men,

the women taunt Dengbe.

Dengbe's presence is also witness to another drama.

Unexpectedly, Ali's mother felt her baby change position.

Likano's worries are forgotten.

She must be looked after.

This medicine, always used during labour, contains plant oestrogens.

Ali blesses the medicine.

Dengbe returns to the forest, leaving the village calm.

Her hands are no larger than a thumbnail.

Her shoulders from tip to tip, the size of a little finger.

Ali is distraught.

The baby has taken his place beside his mother.

Ali's sister, born into the world of the Baka.

The first sounds she hears are those of her people...

her village...

..her forest.

Her people are the people of the rainforest.

SOOTHING STRING MUSIC

HE SINGS

Several weeks later,

and Ali is adjusting to his new place in the family.

THEY HUM TOGETHER

HE SINGS

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd