Moeder Dao de schildpadgelijkende

Monnikendam viewed no less than 260,000 metres of nitrate film, filmed often for propaganda purposes. His selection of extraordinary archive material consists of shots of the landscape, of plantations and industry showing colonial exploitation, and the presence of Europeans in their immaculate helmets and tropical suits. Monnikendam also selects fragments that shock us now, such as those of two young children smoking a cigarette.

The film focuses on how the Netherlands governed in Indonesia between 1912 and 1933 – running a colonial enterprise showing

what the balance of power was like at the time. The title Mother Dao refers to the creation story according to the inhabitants of the island of Nias, told at the beginning of the film.