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Clip description
As cousins Jale and Adriu break open coconuts in their village, they talk about what life in Suva might be like. While Jale is interested in the girls, Adriu says he’ll be too busy to worry about that – he’s going to study to be a medical officer. Jale says he wishes he had brains like Adriu.
Villagers are shown building a house made from coconut palms, leaves and reeds. Some of the men make twine from coconut fibre. Women make mats for the floors. As the camera focuses on the different jobs of the villagers, the voice-over mentions that they never seem to have enough men for the work as the young men like to leave for the city life of Suva.
The women are shown fishing and some of them blacken their eyes with charcoal to deflect the glare of the sunlight. Jale’s cousin Serena is one of the women fishing. Jale and Adriu ride towards the beach and Jale comes up behind his cousin and playfully surprises her.
Curator’s notes
Jale and Adriu are contrasting characters. Adriu is the smart one – he is about to go to study in Suva to be a medical officer. Jale is just interested in seeing all the girls. When Jale follows his cousin to Suva later on in the film, his experience of the city is less fulfilling than Adriu’s. Jale returns to his village where he can contribute to the community activities that are shown here in this clip.
