Jimmy Piaguaje

Indigenous Filmmaker

Jimmy is of Siekopai nationality, which means “the people of many colors.” He comes from the Siekoya Remolino community in the Ecuadorian Amazon and works as an audiovisual filmmaker. His work with community cinema in the territory has given him the opportunity to rediscover his ancestral culture and the Siekopai worldview. With this interest, he began working in film several years ago. During this time, he has created several short documentaries, including the animation “Ñakomasira,” “The Industry of Fire” about forest fires in Bolivia, and “Fighting COVID-19 With Ancestral Wisdom in the Amazon,” which was published by The New Yorker.

Jimmy’s documentaries showcase his people’s struggle against the problems caused by the oil industry and the monoculture of African palm. These forms of extractivism threaten their territory and their way of life, including the pollution of water sources. This has a particularly significant impact on them because their way of life depends on the rivers, and their connection to water is sacred.

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