DESCRIPTION
During her research in Swiss museums, Sri Lankan artist Deneth Piumakshi Veda Arachchige comes across a collection of human remains and cultural objects from the Wanniyala-Aetto, an indigenous Sri Lankan Adivasi community. The objects were brought to Basel at the beginning of the 20th century by Swiss naturalists Paul and Fritz Sarasin – using methods that combine colonial violence and scientific aspirations in a disturbing way. Sri Lanka demanded the return of some of these items already in the 1970s – but Switzerland refused. Now, decades later, Deneth Piumakshin Veda Arachchige and Uruwarige Wannilaththo, the chief of the Wanniyala-Aetto, are committed to ensuring that the human remains and artefacts are finally returned. A lengthy process begins …
«Elephants & Squirrels» sheds light on Switzerland’s involvement in the colonial system. The film tells the past and the present from various perspectives and confronts Switzerland with crucial questions about power, historical responsibility and cultural heritage.
News & reviews
Acquisition news: Filmotor picks up DOK Leipzig title Elephants & Squirrels – Business Doc Europe, Business Doc Europe, Oct 14 2025
Trailer exclusive release on IDA Documentary Magazine: Exclusive: Trailer for Gregor Brändli’s ‘Elephants & Squirrels,’ Premiering at DOK Leipzig and IDFA | International Documentary Association
Interview with Gregor Braendli for Business Doc Europe: DOK Leipzig Int’l Comp: Elephants & Squirrels by Gregor Brändli – Business Doc Europe
“Informative, illuminating, engrossing, and entertaining. It’s a richly detailed journey through time and space that takes a very familiar topic and explores it through a very geographically precise prism, telling a universal story that draws us in via its cultural specificity, getting to the heart and art of the matter with clever, thorough elegance.” The Film Verdict, Max Bord, Oct 31 2025
Elephants & Squirrels – Kritik | Film 2025 | Moviebreak.de , 70%
“It might serve as a guide as to how disputes and toxic misconceptions of the past could be resolved in the present day” Cineuropa, Nov 4 2025
Sri Lankan artist challenges Swiss museums over looted heritage – SWI swissinfo.ch