No matter what their origin or skin color, babies all over the world arouse our curiosity. Everywhere, mothers have the same concern: meeting their child’s needs, feeding and protecting them… However, depending on the country, the climate, and the culture, there are a myriad of different ways to carry babies, send them to sleep, dress them, or name them…
Everything starts with the birth. Once named, washed, and given the once-over, baby can get to grips with the surrounding world. And so begins the learning cycle which will help them to structure their waking life, personality and beliefs.
Hitherto unseen archive footage from many museums and research centers allows us to understand certain attitudes, gestures and sometimes unusual techniques.
From massages in India through carrying techniques in Africa, from the Inuits’ pre-mastication of seal meat through the initiatory body-painting of Amazonian tribes, traditional customs in societies passed down through the generations serve to highlight our own rituals in the Western world.

Photos

Credits

Directed by

Emmanuelle Nobécourt

Co-writers:

Béatrice Fontanel & Claire d’Harcourt

Produced by

Cie des phares et balises, Canal +, CNRS

Distribution:

Docstar

Technical information

Copyright :

2000

Running time:

52 minutes

Broadcasts :

Canal + (12/14/2000)