A few of the films in this collection deal with travels and include problematic depictions of native peoples. Much of the time, early film and photography of non-Western societies often played into stereotypical (and usually racist) depictions of "others." See below to get more detailed information on the films and learn about their historical context.
| Travel Films |
|---|
| The Belgian Congo (1931) |
| Kaiteur Falls and the Amazon (1926) |
| "Indigenous" Conservation |
|---|
| Pilgrims of the Wild, Reel 1 (1935) |
| Pilgrims of the Wild, Reel 2 (1935) |
The following film taken by Alice Mackie documents an entomology trip the Cockerells and the Ogilvies made for 10 months across Africa during 1931 and 1932. This specific film is from the Belgian Congo. It highlights little of their biological work and instead focuses on documenting native groups, including the "Pygmies." Like other early films of native groups, this film is problematic because of the way scenes may have been filmed, staged, edited, etc. to play into dominant (and usually racist) tropes of non-western peoples.
It is still an important film both from this perspective and because, along with a plethora of other documents, it gives us incredible insight into this trip to Africa taken almost 100 years ago. Below the film, you can also find the diary of Alice Mackie, who did the filming from the expedition. The T.D.A. Cockerell Papers in the CU Boulder archives also holds additional materials relating to this expedition, such as photographs, notes and publications, and fliers for public presentations the Cockerells hosted using this film.
Alice Mackie's Travel Diary
Shown here is Alice Mackie's diary from her trip to Africa with the Cockerells and Ogilvies in 1931 and 1932. Alice Mackie did most of the photography and filming for the group.
The two films below were produced for the National Parks of Canada and were meant to highlight the conservation ethic of native groups. However, Grey Owl, who is the main character of the film, is a controversial figure. He claimed to be part indigenous and spent much of his life traveling Canada and promoting conservation. After his death, it was discovered that he was actually British, not Native American. Anahareo, the women in the film, was indigenous and worked with Grey Owl in the mid-1930s. She was a noted animal rights activist and conservationist who went on to have a long and successful career.