The animated film Hidirtina (Sisters) is an overlay of Ethiopian and Eritrean folklore onto the skyscrapers of New York. A hunter by the name of Yohanes defies a prohibition against killing a sacred deer, for which terrible punishments are prescribed. But one of the immortal forest sisters has fallen in love with him and tells him that he can save himself by climbing a magic tree. The hunter then lives happily for many years, protected by an amulet made from a branch of the tree, which he wears around his neck. However, one day the amulet falls into a river and Yohanes is at once set upon and killed by fearsome vultures. The story was told to the artist by a female emigrant like himself (her name appears in the credits). Old legends change in the conditions of another culture, but not beyond recognition, and they continue to form the basis of a world view.
