The Portland EcoFilm Festival’s Global Ecological Cinema Podcast

Episode Two
AKABABURU: EXPRESSION OF ASTONISHMENT

Featured Guests: Irati Dojura and Laura Giraldo

Release Date: March 19, 2026

English Transcript:

ROZZELL MEDINA: Welcome to the Portland EcoFilm Festival’s Global Ecological Cinema Podcast, where we share in-depth conversations about fascinating intersections of ecology, cinema, and filmmaking. Embracing the root definition of ecology, we explore what it means for humanity to have, hold, and transmit knowledge of Planet Earth as our shared home—through the power of cinema from around the living world.

AKABABURU: EXPRESSION OF ASTONISHMENT is a short film from Colombia’s Karmata Rua Indigenous Reservation that reinterprets the myth of Kiraparamia, a woman who is punished by the gods for laughing at her husband. Through stop motion animation and live action, we see this legend come to life, framed by the experiences and connection of two young women who help each other understand that Kiraparamia’s laughter actually set her free and restored her essential bond to nature.

The film is an Official Selection in our 2026 festival, featured in our Indigenous Voices series, which centers the wisdom, accomplishments, stories, and struggles of Indigenous people around the living world.

For this episode, I talked with Irati Dojura, director, and Laura Giraldo, producer, of AKABABURU: EXPRESSION OF ASTONISHMENT. Our interpreters are Paula and Ariana.

ROZZELL MEDINA: Irati, How old is the legend of Kiraparamia, and when did you first encounter it?

IRATI DOJURA: It’s a pre-Hispanic legend, and it first came to me in a play I saw when I was little, back in my territory. I was really surprised that laughter was the reason for her punishment, and consequently what turned her into a monstrous animal. So that was my first memory: seeing the woman in the play crying, terrified, running from her husband, and people laughing... and me not understanding why they were laughing at her suffering.

ROZZELL MEDINA: It sounds like you decided to make a film to restore justice to Kiraparamia, in a sense.

IRATI DOJURA:I saw it as a way to give her a happy ending, maybe. Ultimately, I wanted laughter to be a reward, not for her to be sad, or for people to think laughing was wrong. But it was more about laughter as her freedom. I’d like to hear Laura’s opinion on this too. Even though I’m the one bringing the myth because I’m from the territory, colleagues like her who have been there from the start have a perspective on this.

LAURA GIRALDO: I think it’s a very good interpretation because so many works and stories have been made where we look back at ancient histories or legends—not just mythology from a specific territory, but from the world—where things like gender or the role of women are reconsidered. So in that sense, you’re right. We want to restore a little justice to this mythological woman. Through investigation, we found it could have different interpretations and that laughter wasn't necessarily a punishment, but a reward, or a blessing.

ROZZELL MEDINA: Speaking of blessings,I love the spontaneous sisterhood that blossoms between the two main characters, Kari and Kera. One very charming aspect of their interaction is their negotiation of language. Can you tell us more about the language that’s spoken in the film and share some context about the meaningfulness of this interaction?

IRATI DOJURA: The language is Emberá Chamí, which is one of 65 native languages still alive in Colombia. The interaction is really beautiful, not just because of the interaction itself, but because it’s a short film spoken in this ancestral language, which is disappearing since Spanish is the dominant language in Colombia. So, the relationship between these two young girls is about speaking their language. It's especially poignant because the teenager, the one telling the story to the little girl, is always asking, "Mmm, how do you say fruit? How do you say story?" She represents the youth who don't want to lose their language, who want to reclaim it. And that character is a bit like me—I'm a young woman who is also reclaiming her language now that I'm older because I didn't master it much in my childhood.

ROZZELL MEDINA: At the Portland EcoFilm Festival, we’re featuring AKABABURU in a program called Expansive Ecological Imagination. What was it like for you to reimagine this myth, and what has the reception to your reinterpretation been like, especially in your community?

IRATI DOJURA: What I have to say is that the openness of my community was so valuable, simply for the fact that they let me tell this story, film it in the territory, they trusted me to work with the kids, and gave me the opportunity. There are two important things here. First, in my territory, the system of government is called Cabildos, which means you have to ask the entire community for permission in a big meeting called an assembly. I asked for authorization there, and they granted it. Second, this is my thesis project to graduate from university. So I had been researching the myth, asking adults and older women about these different versions, and people saw my commitment to asking and finding things out. I think that built more trust. However, there are people who don't agree with this interpretation, which is also valid.

ROZZELL MEDINA: I'd like to move on to a few things related to ecology and some of the themes in the film. Do you see communion, story, and sisterhood being related to ecology?

IRATI DOJURA: I think we can find a lot of connections because we're looking to redefine the figure of a mythological woman as a Mother Nature figure. A while ago, I came across the concept of ecofeminism, which relates the mistreatment of women as a parallel to the damage done to Mother Earth. So I think they’re interconnected. Even if it wasn't something we planned from the start, there's a direct relationship. Just like with nature, what we wanted for Kiraparamia is that she be free, that we respect her laughter, and that she simply live in harmony in nature without being mistreated, silenced, or punished for being exactly who she is.

ROZZELL MEDINA: Laura?

LAURA GIRALDO: Well, to add to that a bit, understanding ecology as the study of our home, of our Mother Earth, means understanding that it’s also about the relationships between the beings that inhabit it. And those relationships include us as human beings. It’s about understanding that relationship we’re proposing through laughter and joy, rather than through hate and sadness.

ROZZELL MEDINA: Sticking with that theme, how about laughter and joy, particularly women's joy, in relation to ecology?

IRATI DOJURA: Yes, this question really complements what we just said. We're looking for a space of freedom for that natural woman, for Mother Earth, for women in general,

ROZZELL MEDINA: There's some behind the scenes footage in the film and it looks like there was a lot of joy on set. Can you share some lessons you learned about nurturing joy as part of the filmmaking process?

LAURA GIRALDO: Well, sure, like any shoot there were plenty of mishaps, but also lots of laughs. The good thing is that we were a team that was more than just a team—we were friends. So we were there to support each other and laugh at the mistakes, the problems, the wins, and the losses. So it was a learning process filled with laughter. And of course it’s a children’s short film with child actors. So it was important to have a calm, happy work environment. I think one of the scenes in the behind-the-scenes footage, which was also the funniest scene to shoot, was when the firefighters made it rain. After we filmed, the kids just started playing in the water.

ROZZELL MEDINA: I love that. So maybe some good advice for filmmakers who want to bring joy to the process is to have some good hearted firemen on set. In addition to dedicating the film to Kiraparamia herself, you dedicate it to all the girls and women of the Karmata Rua Indigenous Reservation. Can you say a bit more about this place, these girls and women, and how they've responded to AKABABURU?

IRATI DOJURA: Many writers and filmmakers say you write about what you know. And in this case, I credit the women of my territory because I also come from a house full of women who raised me and gave me the strength to question stories like Kiraparamia’s. So I recognize that I come from a territory where women have leadership roles. I especially have the pleasure of coming from a family of many women who have been brave leaders in this process. And to put it in context a bit, my territory has its second female ruler after 40 years of history where there were only men. So that’s it: the recognition is for them, for the women who leave a legacy, especially in my territory.

ROZZELL MEDINA: AKABABURU is an official selection in our Indigenous Voices series, which centers the wisdom, accomplishments, stories and struggles of Indigenous people around the living world. I'd like to hear your perspective on a few questions relevant to Indigenous cinema. Who were some of the Indigenous filmmakers who inspired you to become a filmmaker?

IRATI DOJURA: Honestly, I only started recognizing Indigenous women filmmakers very recently, because I always recognized men. For me, it is very important to recognize an Indigenous filmmaker named Ángeles Cruz; she's a powerful woman from Mexico. I feel that in her stories she also questions things, revitalizes the language, and elevates the role of women in her territory. I also want to take this opportunity to say that with AKABABURU, I became the first Indigenous woman nominated in the history of the Berlinale in this category, and today we found out that there is another short film also directed by an Indigenous woman from Colombia that has been nominated at the Berlinale. So I feel like doors are opening, spaces are opening up to listen to us, and we are in that historic moment. So I mention it now with a lot of pride.

ROZZELL MEDINA: What are some of the gifts that Indigenous cinema offers the world in your opinion?

IRATI DOJURA: It is said often, and reaffirmed, that Indigenous territories conserve the majority of the forests and biodiversity on the planet. And speaking as a woman too, the fact that we are allowed spaces to tell our own stories—when for years they have always been told from a Western point of view—is a great gift that the world can receive, and that they can allow us, in our own languages. It’s a matter of resistance, of cultural survival, demonstrating that we also have stories to tell from the inside and that we have the tools to do it professionally. I think it’s a mutual gift, from both sides. Receiving it and also letting it happen. And spaces like these where we are allowed to be heard, even if we don't speak the same language—it's a channel, a support, a path to keep interconnecting.

LAURA GIRALDO: I’d like to add that something I find very beautiful about the production of Indigenous cinema isn't just the story itself, but the way of producing cinema, of understanding that whole process. Because it’s not just a matter of arriving at a place, filming, and leaving. The territory and the population are taken into account. So it’s a story articulated within a context, and it’s about making a social impact in the territory, providing jobs in the same place, drawing stories from the place where they are born, and everything being very collaborative—not so much about "producing," but about understanding each other.

ROZZELL MEDINA: Is there any advice you would give to young aspiring Indigenous filmmakers, or advice you would have liked to receive before making AKABABURU?

IRATI DOJURA: Far from giving advice, I think this is something I would have liked to hear myself back then: you have to know how to surround yourself with people who have good hearts. Being surrounded by good friends will get you ahead. I think that’s very important. And I think that would be, in a humble way, my advice for anyone listening: know who to surround yourself with. You know how to identify who is good for your life and who isn't, who can support you and who can't.

ROZZELL MEDINA: Laura?

LAURA GIRALDO: Honestly, I was going to answer something very similar to Irati. The only advice I can think of right now is to surround yourself with people who believe in you, and in your project. People you can talk to. Even if they might not know much about what they're going to face, they should be willing to seek help, mentorship, advisors—all that. Basically, people who are willing to learn, listen to you, and contribute.

ROZZELL MEDINA: What astonished or surprised you about making this film?

IRATI DOJURA: Well, my comment is that it keeps surprising me. AKABABURU is also my own awakening of astonishment. Really, it’s been a gift from life—the persistence of so many years fighting for this project—and seeing how a story that I thought was so internal, so specific to a community, ended up being universal. It surprised me a lot to talk with women in different countries, different cultures, and have them tell me, "I've also been afraid on the street when I met someone," or "I was also scolded for having a loud, scandalous laugh." So it's about reclaiming that, speaking about what is your own. What you think is individual can connect many more people than you think.

ROZZELL MEDINA: I want to say that while I know that in certain ways it's a film for women, it's also a film that I hope a lot of men see and really let into their hearts.

IRATI DOJURA: I feel like it’s directed at both. Obviously, as a woman, I have that dedication towards women, but really, this movie couldn't have been made without the generous help of so many men who supported us in making it. Even the boys who acted. But it was also with the idea of changing that mindset, and we want men to be part of the discussion. So it’s for both, right? Wanting to recognize the gentle support of all the men who were part of this and who also support us and make us laugh loud and free. Just like you, allowing us to have this space here and listening to us. So thanks for that.

ROZZELL MEDINA: Can you please share a few questions that you would ask people to consider after they watch AKABABURU: EXPRESSION OF ASTONISHMENT?

IRATI : I’d like everyone to ask themselves if there is any story, whether from their childhood or adulthood, that they would like to change—that they would like to have a different ending. I think that would be the biggest question I’d like to plant in everyone’s mind: we don’t always have to accept the ending we’re told. What if we think of a different one? That would be mine.

LAURA GIRALDO: Well, I would ask them: what is a story where laughter was the main character, or where laughter saved them from an awkward or bad situation, or just the best story they have that makes them laugh every time they remember it.

ROZZELL MEDINA: Finally, please share some of your favorite ecological films–as defined by you–and why you love them.

IRATI DOJURA: The first is PRINCESS MONONOKE, a Studio Ghibli animation. I love the reflection on nature, the guardian, the woman who is there leading this fight. And on the other hand, the documentary called THE SALT OF THE EARTH by Sebastião Salgado, which is a work that makes us reflect on climate change.

LAURA GIRALDO: I was just thinking of the same movie Irati said, PRINCESS MONONOKE. So I’m going to say another one from Studio Ghibli called NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND. Both have a very strong female character. There’s also this message of protecting nature, only in NAUSICAA it’s a bit more dystopian—like, after the disaster already happened—but still from a very hopeful and beautiful perspective. It’s about the whole commitment we have as human beings to protect nature.

ROZZELL MEDINA: Irati Dojura and Laura Giraldo, thank you both very much for making AKABABURU: EXPRESSION OF ASTONISHMENT, for sharing it with us, and for all the good you do in the world.

Irati Dsojura: Arakiruma—as we say in my mother tongue, gratitude.

Rozzell Medina: If you haven’t seen AKABABURU: EXPRESSION OF ASTONISHMENT, I hope you’ll find the opportunity. If you have seen it, I hope you’ll talk about it with your friends, family, and strangers.

PRINCESS MONONOKE, NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND, and THE SALT OF THE EARTH directed by Juliano Salgado and Wim Wenders are all available to rent at the world’s best video store, Movie Madness, in Portland, Oregon.

The 2026 Portland EcoFilm Festival is sponsored by Crag Law Center and SOLVE.

We a signature program of the Hollywood Theater, Portland, Oregon’s premier modern-historic movie palace. Learn more at PortlandEcoFilmFest.org and hollywoodtheatre.org

Our theme music is from the song Earth Worship by the amazing band Rubblebucket.

Thank you to Ariana, Paula, and Stefania for interpretation and translation services.

Our Global Ecological Cinema Podcast is hosted, edited, and produced by myself, Rozzell Medina. Thanks for listening–and for all the good you do in the world.

We’ll be back every week through June with more conversations about fascinating intersections of ecology, cinema, and filmmaking.

Thanks for listening–and for all the good you do in the world.