Amazon, the New Minamata?

The documentary feature film "Amazon, the New Minamata?", directed by one of Brazil's greatest documentary filmmakers, is a manifesto against the alarming levels of mercury contamination in the Amazon rainforest today, which seriously threatens the health of several indigenous and riverside populations. The film draws a parallel between the current situation experienced by the Munduruku indigenous people (in particular), with that experienced by the Japanese during and after the Minamata disaster in the 1950s, which became known as one of the greatest environmental disasters in the world. Led by strong characters, such as indigenous leader and activist Alessandra Munduruku and neurologist Dr. Erik Jennings, "Amazon, the New Minamata?" (which has the support of Fiocruz and is co-produced by Ocean Films and Globo Filmes) is more than a film: it is a call for awareness.