Yanuni
An Indigenous leader confronts lethal threats and political pressure while defending her Amazonian homeland and preparing for motherhood.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- urgent
- intimate
- serious
- social justice screening
- environmental awareness viewing
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Juma Xipaia’s personal leadership, pregnancy, and exposure to assassination attempts organize the documentary’s account of Indigenous land defense.
Juma fights to protect tribal lands while facing direct threats, linking environmental stewardship to physical survival.
The struggle intensifies after Juma learns she is pregnant, placing impending motherhood alongside her duties as chief.
The Amazon rainforest setting frames the film’s environmental stakes and Indigenous relationship to place.
Films like Yanuni, and why
The Territory
Shares an urgent environmental documentary focus, Indigenous land defense, and resistance against extractive threats in the Amazon.
A River Below
Shares a politically engaged documentary style, environmental crisis, and courageous activists confronting powerful institutions.
The Last Ice
Shares intimate nonfiction portraiture, Indigenous cultural preservation, and the personal costs of political resistance.
Movie Details
- Director
- Richard Ladkani
- Release Date
- 2026-04-24
- Runtime
- 112 min
- Rating
- 8.0 / 10 (1)
Cast
- Juma Xipaia
- Hugo Loss
- Tuppak Tawary Xipaia
- Yanuni Xipaia Loss
Common questions
- What is Yanuni about?
- An Indigenous leader confronts lethal threats and political pressure while defending her Amazonian homeland and preparing for motherhood.
- What is Yanuni like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Yanuni as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Yanuni violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Yanuni as mild.
- Which films are like Yanuni?
- Films with a similar feel include The Territory, A River Below, and The Last Ice.
- How long is Yanuni?
- Yanuni runs 112 minutes.
