Filmkollektiv Zürich

Bern, 1980: A caleidoscopic portrait of Swiss urban life in the early 1980s.

The old farm worker Pipe is old enough to retire. Even so he cannot imagine a life without work. So he keeps on doing his job and wonders what to do with his additional financial means.

The documentary retraces the steps of Bruno Manser, a man from Switzerland who went to live with the indigenous tribe of the Penan in the Jungle of Borneo and endef up helping their struggle to defend their rainforest against greedy logging companies. The movie features original film, photo and voice recordings by Bruno Manser made in the 1980s, as well as new recordings showing how the life of the Penan has changed in just a few decades.

This is a portrait of a man and of a country, as he travels through it. He is a travelling salesman, and travels through Switzerland selling cosmetics to beauty parlours.

The film explores the reasons for emigrating from Italy and describes the feeling of being a stranger in one's own country after many years in Switzerland. It is the sequel to Emigrazione.