LOOKING FOR TCHAIKO is a documentary collage by a child of Pan-Africanist activists in the Caribbean Postcolonial Independence Movement. Interweaving her story with those of her age-mates and elders, the filmmaker — now a mother wanting to repair generations of harm — excavates the roots of her family’s namesakes.
Breaking the mode of traditional talking head historical documentaries, LOOKING FOR TCHAIKO paints from a palette of varied hues and textures including; the mythology and spirituality of the African diaspora, performative movement, theatrical set design and epic cinematic landscapes. The film creates a complex, multi-layered and intimate portrait of Caribbean post colonial revolutionaries — their struggle, sacrifices, and the stakes of resistance. Meanwhile, the director gradually unpacks her own journey to raise a resilient black child who is equipped to face the challenges of climate change, attacks on historical truth and our present critical juncture for freedom. LOOKING FOR TCHAIKO aims to remember and learn from the past — and from each other — to create the future we all need.
