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THE NUBA AND AFRICA
In 1962 Riefenstahl joined a scientific expedition that was moving through East Africa and the Sudan. Her hope was to of locate the Nuba tribe, which had been untouched by western man. Riefenstahl was seeking a people not corrupted by money, ideas of immodesty and religion. Many tribes in Africa having given over their traditional beliefs to the theological restrictions of Islam and Christianity. Such contact led of course, to belief in "modesty", loss of native rituals, dances and a loss of innocence.
When she finally located the Nuba tribe, she lived with them for over 9 months. These were the Mesakin Nuba of the Sudan. Almost as an afterthought, Riefenstahl made a decision to become a documentary filmmaker again. She was able to obtain financial and project assistance and began to utilize Leica still cameras and a 16mm film camera. She would return to them periodically, staying for a few months or more. By the time she returned in 1974 (following an absence of about five years) they had faced the inevitable encroachment of modern man. That contact had caused irretrievable changes in manner, behavior, custom. Such assimilation made the Mesakin Nuba unattractive to Riefenstahl's aesthetic .
It was obvious that she would need to move on to another tribe more removed from western contact.
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