"Public Vodun Ceremonies in Haiti"

I borrowed the above DVD from the library - it's available for purchase in the US from Insight Media. The filmmaker was permitted to video a number of commmunity Vodun ceremonies, and her narration explains the complex action.

What struck me was that if you don't know what's taking place, it looks like chaos: a large group of people dancing strangely, singing incomprehensibly, and waving objects around, apparently entirely at random. This is the popular view of a "voodoo" ceremony - basically, a wild, primitive orgy. But with the narrator's help, you realise that it's all actually extremely organised. A trained and respected leader (or leaders) is running the ritual, everyone knows their role, every dance move and song has a specific purpose and is part of a long-standing, well-known tradition. As an event rich with cultural tradition that involves the whole community, it is in fact the height of civilisation.