Crossroads No. 2, 2017 (excerpt)
Running time: 5:34 minutes / HD / Colour

On an early morning on lake Manyara, cattle herders converge as they make their way in search of water.

Filmed on December 4th, 2016.

Camera: Sylvia Safdie
Editing: Patrick Andrew Boivin, Sylvia Safdie
Audio: Silent

In March and November 2016, I made two trips to Lake Manyara, Tanzania. On each occasion I spent several days in the same spot observing and recording instances that transpired and transformed in front of me.

Note: Lake Manyara is a shallow lake in the East African Rift in the Manyara Region in Tanzania. The lake fluctuates with seasons – dry spells expose large areas of mud flats. The lake and its environs is home of a diverse set of landscapes and wildlife. It is an open undulating country with many herds of game. It is also home to the Maasai tribes who live in harmony grazing their cattle.

For the Maasai, land means life. Nomadic tribes in the northern Tanzania highlands have grazed cattle for centuries. Today the livelihood and rights of the nomads who need land to survive is threatened by tourism and wildlife conservation, which brings revenue to the country.