Tsaatan, the last free men of Mongolia

They are nicknamed “the Reindeer People”. They are one of the most amazing tribes on the planet. There are only two hundred of them left and they live in the far north of Mongolia, in a deserted, inaccessible and frozen region. Always isolated from the world, the Tsaatans, these nomadic reindeer herders, have preserved their ancestral traditions and practice shamanism. They live in small family clans, inhabiting simple canvas tents in temperatures that drop to minus 40 degrees in winter. But they say they are happy to live like this, free, in the middle of sublime and preserved nature. And they never complain. Their happiness and their way of life, day by day, offer a striking contrast with our Western lives. But today, the modern world and technology are catching up with them. School, recently made compulsory for children, is at the center of all their questions. What to do? Protect children from progress they consider harmful or educate them and offer them the opportunity to integrate into civilization? These nomads know that they will have to choose between their traditions and contemporary life, between their freedom and comfort. Aware of being at a turning point in their history, will the Tsaatans manage to survive the encounter between their world and ours? This documentary offers us a spectacular journey into a timeless universe, miraculously preserved.
Director: Pierre DaSilva and Hervé Bouchaud
Production date: 2023