2020 was specific. COVID-19 affected many aspects of our life. But the support of a reliable partner, VTB Bank, made it possible for the Miklouho-Maclay Foundation this year to produce and release two documentaries that include extensive material collected during a research expedition to the Maclay Coast (New Guinea Island) in 2019.
From the documentary “Maclay Returns” people can learn about the return of N. N. Miklouho-Maclay, but this time his descendant, to the Maclay Coast. The indigenous people (Papuans) still keep the memory of Miklouho-Maclay Sr. by passing on the stories about him by word of mouth.
“Asel Tui: Descendant of Tui” is a film about the life of the Papuan Asel Tui on the Maclay Coast, the clan Elder. He is the descendant of the legendary Tui, who was first to meet a Russian scientist and mistook him for a man from the Moon because of his white skin color. A unique narrative of everyday life in a world that preserves its traditions, and the civilization that permeates all walks of life.
The films were premiered in early December on VK.com even before the official broadcast. For the first days they got more than 300,000 views!
Films with a stunning success were first presented at the festival “Days of Papua New Guinea in Saint-Petersburg” on November 26, but only for visitors.
The “Maclay Coast” model layout was also presented at the festival. It was created in accordance with the archival materials and it showcases the first meet of the Russian scientist with the indigenous people of the New Guinea Island.
Implementation of such large-scale projects has become possible thanks to the sponsor general VTB Bank, which in this difficult year provided significant support to socially significant scientific and cultural projects of the Miklouho-Maclay Foundation. Films can now delight a wide audience not only in Russia but also abroad, because they have subtitles in English, and the model layout will become part of the museum exhibition.
Miklouho-Maclay Foundation expresses its gratitude to VTB Bank and personally to Andrey Kostin for the support of projects aimed at promoting bilateral relations between Russia, Papua New Guinea and ASEAN countries.
Implemented projects certainly contribute to the positive image of Russia in the world, because it is well known that the cultural and humanitarian projects are the basis for long-term relations between people, become a good basis for building long-term economic relations.