The Last Of Their People
Deep within the dense, emerald veins of the Amazon rainforest, two men live lives unlike any others on Earth. Known as Pakyî and Tamandua, they are the last known members of the Piripkura tribe still living in their ancestral homeland.
For decades, they have moved quietly through the forest, avoiding the modern world while holding fiercely to the traditions of a people nearly wiped out.
Shadows of a Vanished Village
Once part of a vibrant community of more than 100 people, the Piripkura now exist as a near-vanished thread in the fabric of Indigenous history. What happened to the rest of the tribe—how such a significant population could collapse into near-oblivion—is still partially obscured by silence and unanswered questions. 
Piripkura: Survival & Tracking, CinemaLibre
The Butterfly People
To the neighboring Gavião people, they are the Piripkura, meaning "butterfly people"—a name that poetically captures their elusive presence. Their movements through the rainforest are quiet and ghostlike, seldom seen and rarely heard. Like butterflies, they seem to appear and disappear with the lightest disturbance.
Piripkura: Survival & Tracking, CinemaLibre
A Tupi-Kawahib Tongue
The Piripkura speak a dialect of the Tupi-Kawahib language family—now nearly extinct. With so few speakers left, each word they utter is a cultural relic. Every phrase is not just communication but resistance—a preservation of identity in a world that has tried to erase them.
Piripkura - HD Documentary - The saga of the last two remaining Piripkura Indians in the Amazon, Fragments of the Amazon
Struggle For Survival
The 1980s brought devastation. Unlawful logging operations tore into the forest with chainsaws, destroying ecosystems and lives. Anthropologists believe that most of the remaining Piripkura were taken out during this time. From the wreckage, only three survivors were confirmed: Pakyî, Tamandua, and a woman named Rita.
Piripkura - HD Documentary - The saga of the last two remaining Piripkura Indians in the Amazon, Fragments of the Amazon
Blood and Betrayal
In a harrowing recounting, Rita—who later emerged as a key witness to the tribe’s downfall—claimed that Pakyî had ended the lives of her children during the chaos of the tribe’s collapse. Whether out of confusion, desperation, or cultural breakdown, the tragedy hints at the psychological toll of witnessing a world disintegrate.
Piripkura: The Last Two Survivors | Trailer | Documentary | Indigenous Brazilians, CinemaLibre
From Captivity to Discovery
Rita's survival did not mean safety. She spent years as a virtual prisoner on a cattle ranch owned by the powerful Penço family, enduring pain and isolation. Eventually she escaped, and in 1989, she joined an expedition led by Jair Candor, an expert on uncontacted peoples. Together, they ventured into the forest—and found her surviving kin: Pakyî and his nephew, Tamandua.
Piripkura: The Last Two Survivors | Trailer | Documentary | Indigenous Brazilians, CinemaLibre
Mysterious Name Changes
Over the years, the names Pakyî and Tamandua have shifted. Records suggest these are not the names they were born with, but rather those given—or adopted—through the process of documentation. The original names, like much of their culture, may now be lost.
Piripkura: The Last Two Survivors | Trailer | Documentary | Indigenous Brazilians, CinemaLibre
A Solitary Existence
The pair live deep within the Piripkura Indigenous Territory in Mato Grosso, Brazil. By choice, they remain isolated, rejecting offers of permanent resettlement. 
IDFA 2017 | Trailer | Piripkura, IDFA
Crafted from Nature
Their homes are living artifacts. They sleep in hammocks woven from tree bark. Their shelters are made with the broad leaves of the babaçu palm. 
IDFA 2017 | Trailer | Piripkura, IDFA
Tapir Traps and Torchlight
With no access to modern tools or electricity, their equipment is minimal but effective: a dull machete, a blind ax, and a flaming torch. With these, they hunt tapirs, trap game, and navigate the forest with a precision unmatched by satellites or maps.
Piripkura - HD Documentary - The saga of the last two remaining Piripkura Indians in the Amazon, Fragments of the Amazon
A Protected Homeland—For Now
In 2008, the Brazilian government recognized the need to protect their land. They established a protected area of 242,500 hectares—a rare victory for Indigenous land rights. But it came with an expiration date.
Piripkura - HD Documentary - The saga of the last two remaining Piripkura Indians in the Amazon, Fragments of the Amazon
The Battle Over Land
The protection was not welcomed by all. Ranchers and logging interests, especially the influential Penço family, fought back. They claimed the land was too vast for just two men and accused the government of stifling development under the banner of Indigenous rights.
Piripkura - HD Documentary - The saga of the last two remaining Piripkura Indians in the Amazon, Fragments of the Amazon
Ranchers vs. Guardians
Francisco Penço, a vocal critic and landowner, labeled the men political pawns used by environmentalists. But for Pakyî and Tamandua, the land is not a political platform—it is the last sanctuary of their people.
Encroaching Destruction
Despite safeguards, the rainforest is vanishing. In 2020, Piripkura territory suffered the highest rate of deforestation among all Indigenous lands in Brazil. The chainsaws have not stopped—they have only gone deeper.
Deforestation in Brazil Amazon rainforest soars 67 percent, Al Jazeera English
Eyes in the Sky
In 2021, aerial surveys revealed unlawful roads, new buildings, and cattle encampments within the protected zone. Over 12,000 hectares had already been destroyed—an invasion fueled by beef demand and political indifference.
Deforestation in Brazil Amazon rainforest soars 67 percent, Al Jazeera English
Silent Witnesses
Amid this destruction, Pakyî and Tamandua endure. They do not protest with placards or petitions. They resist by living. 
Piripkura - HD Documentary - The saga of the last two remaining Piripkura Indians in the Amazon, Fragments of the Amazon
Signs of Others?
There is speculation that other Piripkura still live undetected in the forest, hidden even from aerial surveillance. If true, these hidden individuals represent both hope and heartbreak—hope that the culture may not yet be extinct, and heartbreak that they must remain in hiding to survive.
Piripkura - HD Documentary - The saga of the last two remaining Piripkura Indians in the Amazon, Fragments of the Amazon
A Brush With Modern Medicine
In 2018, Tamandua fell ill with a brain cyst and was flown to São Paulo for emergency surgery. He barely survived. Around the same time, Pakyî required treatment for prostate problems. These rare hospitalizations were glimpses into a world they never chose.
Piripkura - HD Documentary - The saga of the last two remaining Piripkura Indians in the Amazon, Fragments of the Amazon
A Return to the Forest
Despite offers to remain in the city for continued care, both men insisted on returning to the forest. For them, even sickness in the wild was preferable to comfort under fluorescent lights.
Piripkura - HD Documentary - The saga of the last two remaining Piripkura Indians in the Amazon, Fragments of the Amazon
A Temporary Shield
That same year, Brazil renewed their land protection order—but only for six months. Previous renewals had lasted years. Advocates feared this shorter term reflected waning political will.
Brazil indigenous rights: Calls for protests to protect ancestral lands, Al Jazeera English
Documenting Their Existence
In the 2017 documentary Piripkura, filmmakers captured a critical expedition to locate the two men. Their goal: to prove they still lived, and therefore keep their land protected.
Piripkura - HD Documentary - The saga of the last two remaining Piripkura Indians in the Amazon, Fragments of the Amazon
Film As Witness
Critics praised the documentary’s unfiltered gaze. The film refused to romanticize its subjects, portraying them instead as real men—resilient, injured, enduring. Not artifacts, but human beings clinging to dignity.
PIRIPKURA by Mariana Oliva, Renata Terra, Bruno Jorge | Trailer | GeoMovies, Geomovies
A Call for Demarcation
In 2021, a federal judge ordered the full demarcation of the Piripkura reserve. This marked a crucial step toward permanent protection, ensuring no future government could revoke their right to exist on their land.
Final Thoughts
Pakyî and Tamandua are not simply the last of their tribe—they are the last chapter in a book nearly erased. In a world of noise, they remain quiet. In a time of speed, they remain still. In an age of consumption, they remain content. Their existence reminds us that survival is not always loud—but it is always brave.
IDFA 2017 | Trailer | Piripkura, IDFA
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