The Tree

Quetzalan is a little village high in the mountains of the Mexican state of Puebla, surrounded by tropical forest. This short film shows a ritual without any explanatory information from the director. It starts in the forest, where the sound of birds drowns out the voices of a small group of men. In the forest stands a tree, its trunk reaching 300 feet into the sky. The tree is felled using an electric saw and then dragged by the men from the forest to the road. The next phase of the journey follows with the ends of the long trunk swinging precariously to and fro. Back in the village, the trunk is upended on the square in front of the church. Ropes and crossbars are then attached to it, and the ritual itself can begin. Men dressed in colorful costumes climb to the top and, to the music of flutes and drums, four of them swing on ropes high in the air, circling the top, where the fifth man is dancing.