Jean Rouch, an anthropologist filmmaker

Lam decides to set off into the bush in an old van with an assistant, to sell chickens. When a third person joins the group, the organization of the trip begins to look even more precarious.

The fourth year of the Sigui ceremonies, celebrated every sixty years by the Dogons of the Bandiagara cliffs, Mali, takes place in the village of Amani.

In the village of Firgoun, Niger, a ceremony is held to initiate a Songhai woman to the dance of the possessed.

A Nigerian traditionalist who draws his inspiration from bird warbling to compose music to accompany his verse chronicles.

Beginning of the sextenary festival of the Sigui among the Dogon of the Bandiagara cliff, in Mali. This first ceremony takes place at the village of Yougo Dogorou. The men, shaved and dressed in ritual clothes of the Sigui, enter the public square dancing the snake dance. They honor the terraces of the famous dead of the last sixty years and go to drink the sacramental millet beer.

Traditional houses and new architecture in Ayorou, an island on the River Niger in the archipelago of Tillaberi. The village and its activities; the building of the house of a newly-wed young man.

The second year of the Sigui ceremonies, celebrated every sixty years by the Dogons of the Bandiagara cliffs, Mali, takes place in the village of Tyogou.

In Upper Volta (presently Burkina Faso), the funeral ceremonies for Moro Naba, chief of the Mossis, and ceremonies for electing his successor.

In the village of Simiri, Niger, fisherman Daouda is also a priest of the cult of Dongo, the god of Thunder for the Songhay people. He tells the god's legend by illustrating his account with drawings sketched in the sand at his feet. This version of the film is available in the original version without subtitles.

Dogon funerary rites in the village of Ireli at the foot of the Bandiagara cliffs, Mali.

Twenty-one Sorko fishermen from the islands of Firgoun, Ayorou and Koutougou prepare for a hippopotamus hunt on the Niger river - a big event.

The fifth year of the Sigui ceremonies, celebrated every sixty years by the Dogons of the Bandiagara cliffs, Mali, takes place in the village of Idyeli.

On the Niger River, the island of Ayorou is home to a “singing stone”, an imposing boulder rock covered with cupules. It is used as a percussion instrument by local musicians, who have come in a canoe. After long rehearsals, the artists will play their compositions to their audience accompanied by a guitar.

The third year of the Sigui ceremonies, celebrated every sixty years by the Dogons of the Bandiagara cliffs, Mali, takes place in the village of Bongo.

In Mali, women's funeral rite takes place in the village of Bongo, in Dogon country.

Every five years, the mask society of the Dogons of Sanga, Mali, organizes a great Dama, a ceremony to end the period of mourning and drive away "the dangerous thing". The Dama shown here is for seven dignitaries, one of whom was called Ambara Dolo.

Burial of the Hogon of Sanga, Dogon religious leader of Lower Ogol, Mali.

A group of women is pounding millet to the rhythm of a song, a farmer is hoeing his field in tempo, and a man is dancing to the sound of drums during a ritual of possession. Those are scenes taken from previous films by Jean Rouch. The three sequences illustrates in their own way the importance of song and music in everyday life in Niger, whether in everyday chores, in working the land or during rituals.

Scene of possession during a ceremony to appeal for rain in Niger.

A Yenendi ceremony near the village of Simiri, Niger. Every year, in the seventh month of the dry season, the Songhais hold this ceremony to pray for rain.

A dance of possession takes place in Zima Dauda Sido's concession in Niger. Turu and Bitti, the archaic drums, will be beaten during the ceremony.

Presentation of a play written by Caribbean Julius-Amédée Laou and produced by Daniel Mesguich.

From the bridges of Porto to its estuary, two men are paying tribute to the elegant Douro River. Through Luís de Camões and Prince Henry the Navigator, through its Viking ships and dizzying bridges, the Douro is a great witness of the history and culture of Portugal. Jean Rouch and Manoel de Oliveira are walking alongside while reciting a poem written by de Oliveira himself. During their walk, they are reflecting upon documentary making, the charm of the river and what it represents to them.

The Horendi in Niamey lasts for seven days, during which the "horses of the spirits" (trance dancers) are chosen.

At Maputo, in Mozambique, a group of workers employed by a bottle factory sing and dance every morning in the courtyard. Their singings and dancings relate the history of their migration to South Africa.

The principal secular and sacred rituals of the Sorante magicians in the village of Wanzerbe, Niger.

Shot during the attainment of independence of Ghana on the 6th March of 1957, this film describes the atmosphere in the capital city of Accra.