The Doctor of Santa Ana

Year Published: 1975

Country of Origin: United States

Description: 16mm Film - The Doctor of Santa Ana - BRD 1975 Script and Direction: Theo Ott Camera: Bernd Schmid Cast: Theodor Binder, Carmen Binder, Charlotte Schulz, and others. 'The Doctor of Santa Ana' tells the story of an Indian tribe in central Mexico, the Mazahuas, who have been on the run and living in particularly harsh conditions for many centuries. First they were chased out of their fertile valleys by the Aztecs, later the Spaniards took their laboriously cultivated land from them and drove them even higher into the mountains, into a bleak, barren land of erosion. Today, no one cares about this indigenous people, even though the Mazahuas are vegetating very close to civilization, just an hour's drive from Toluca, the capital of the state of Mexico. The film tells of the misery, illness and resignation of those 60,000 Indians, for whom until recently there was no prospect of finding a connection to the world that surrounds them... The scenes from a large Indian festival show more than a thousand Mazahuas in colorful feathered costumes dancing around the building of a simple infirmary. Beautiful pictures of happy faces radiating hope and gratitude; they celebrate the inauguration of the Mazahua hospital 'Albert Schweitzer', which was opened in the middle of the Mazahua territory on the 100th anniversary of Albert Schweitzer's birth. A work of the 'Indianerhilfe', which could be realized with donations from Germany, Switzerland and the USA and whose completion and maintenance, at least for the next few years, depends on all of us. Just as important as this hospital are the associated farm and small handicraft workshops where capes, carpets and decorative ribbons are woven and embroidered. A structured work program gives the first volunteers the opportunity to learn how to work properly. It is amazing to see how these jaded people, whose gray everyday lives have so far been devoid of any actual professional work or consciously delineated leisure time, now look forward to both work and leisure time, which they suddenly enjoy. A documentary film by Theo Ott about the new aid project for the Mazahua Indians in Mexico by 'jungle doctor' Dr. Theodor Binder, who was awarded the Albert Schweitzer Prize in October 1975. (First broadcast on ZDF: December 25, 1975)

Online Copy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikaS00JSP9M

Metadata Source:YouTube