Expelled from Paradise

Directed & Produced by: Nicolas Muñoz

Stage:
- Development
Location:
- Argentina
Updated: April 3, 2026
Project Type:
- Feature
Project Style:
- Personal ,
- Reportage
Theme Subject:

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Logline

In a dying Amazon where indigenous leaders waver between resistance and surrender, the children see a different fight. For them, this is not yet a stolen future—it is a battle against monsters and demons. Expelled from Paradise follows their journey to navigate a destiny the adults can no longer control.

Clips

This teaser, for Expelled from Paradise, was made with footage from 2 differents trips to the region in 2023 and 2024.
This is a reportage, about gold mining in the Amazon, was co-directed and shooted by Nicolas for ARTE channel (France) and broadcasted in 2024.

Synopsis

Living on the edges of the dwindling Amazonian rainforest, the future is vanishing along with the trees. Multinational corporations are not just extracting gold and timber; but with it the future of children living along the rivers. Mercury is being dumped into the Beni River, rendering it permanently toxic and uninhabitable for communities that have thrived there for generations.

The complex clash between environmental preservation and corporate greed swirls well beyond

...

The complex clash between environmental preservation and corporate greed swirls well beyond the comprehension of the young. In Exit from Paradise, we give them a voice, we explore their perspective. Where adults see destructive machines and economic data, these children see hungry dinosaurs and ancient ghosts.

We step away from abstract concepts like "land rights" and "toxic pollution" to plunge into how children perceive their reality. We witness how they convert intangible dangers into vivid fantasies to make sense of the fear and tension they sense around them.

We are with them at school, on the playground, and at the dinner table. But they also tell their own story, filming from their unique vantage point—eye-level with a shifting world. They show us a world where the river is suddenly too dangerous and is forbidden, and where playground games evolve into rehearsals for survival.

This film is not just another catalog of environmental sins, but a testament to the moment children realize the adults cannot save them, and they must navigate their own Expelled from Paradise.

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Background

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Participants

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Participant

Nicolas Muñoz

Director & Producer

Nicolás Muñoz Documentary Filmmaker & DOP | Buenos Aires, Argentina He studied photography and cinematography at ORT schools, later specializing in documentary filmmaking at INA (France), and honing his craft at UBA (Argentina) and Maine Media College (USA). At age 24, after graduating from film school, he began a 13-year career as a correspondent for Associated Press Television. Covering breaking news across Latin America and beyond, Muñoz reported from extraordinary places and captured urgent, human-centered stories. In 2014, with two young children, he made the difficult decision to leave the news world—stepping away from a stable path into one that was more uncertain, especially financially. He shifted his focus from news to longform documentary work, channeling his journalistic experience into a visual storytelling style that blends strong imagery, emotion, and narrative clarity—even in complex or sensitive environments. In 2018, he won Best Adventure Film at the Banff Film Festival in Canada. Since then, his work has continued to evolve across formats and platforms, earning recognition such as the Sony World Photography Award in 2024 and becoming a Sony Alpha Partner. Today, he collaborates with NGOs, broadcasters, and institutions to tell grounded, human-centered stories with lasting impact. His work explores the intersections of social justice, environmental crisis, and resilience. With a deeply personal approach and a collaborative mindset, Muñoz often works directly with communities to amplify their voices and build powerful narratives from the ground up.

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Participant

Ruth Alipaz Cuqui

Collaborator

Ruth Alipaz Cuqui is a prominent Uchupiamona Indigenous leader from Bolivia and the head of the National Coordinator for the Defense of Indigenous Territories and Protected Areas (Contiocap).
Her dedicated struggle has earned her international recognition; in 2024, she was selected by France 24 as one of the ten most outstanding Latin American women for her defense of the environment and human rights.
Alipaz has dedicated her life to denouncing the systematic depredation of the Bolivian Amazon in northern La Paz, focusing on the impact of gold mining, hydroelectric projects, and agricultural expansion. Her testimony has been vital in raising awareness before the United Nations and other bodies about the toxic and differentiated effects of mercury on rivers (such as the Mapiri, whose channel has been destroyed) and the health of communities, particularly women and children.
Connection to the Documentary:
Ruth was a vital collaborator in the production of the ARTE reportage in 2024, which served as the investigative foundation for Exit from Paradise. Her leadership not only provided safe and secure access to communities affected by mercury contamination, but her vision ensures the documentary reflects the urgency of the struggle and the need for concrete tools for local communities. Her participation is essential for the film's impact strategy.

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Style & Tone

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Team

Nicolas Muñoz

Director & Producer

Team

Nicolas Muñoz

Director & Producer

Nicolás Muñoz Documentary Filmmaker & DOP | Buenos Aires, Argentina He studied photography and cinematography at ORT schools, later specializing in documentary filmmaking at INA (France), and honing his craft at UBA (Argentina) and Maine Media College (USA). At age 24, after graduating from film school, he began a 13-year career as a correspondent for Associated Press Television. Covering breaking news across Latin America and beyond, Muñoz reported from extraordinary places and captured urgent, human-centered stories. In 2014, with two young children, he made the difficult decision to leave the news world—stepping away from a stable path into one that was more uncertain, especially financially. He shifted his focus from news to longform documentary work, channeling his journalistic experience into a visual storytelling style that blends strong imagery, emotion, and narrative clarity—even in complex or sensitive environments. In 2018, he won Best Adventure Film at the Banff Film Festival in Canada. Since then, his work has continued to evolve across formats and platforms, earning recognition such as the Sony World Photography Award in 2024 and becoming a Sony Alpha Partner. Today, he collaborates with NGOs, broadcasters, and institutions to tell grounded, human-centered stories with lasting impact. His work explores the intersections of social justice, environmental crisis, and resilience. With a deeply personal approach and a collaborative mindset, Muñoz often works directly with communities to amplify their voices and build powerful narratives from the ground up.

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Eugenio Osagie

Local Producer

Team

Eugenio Osagie

Local Producer

Founder of the American Language Fund and a producer with over 10 years of experience in environmental and social issues, plays a key role. He has secured access to affected populations and aligned with local leaders, who are ready to contribute both on and off camera.

With the support of FUNAI (National Indigenous People Foundation), Brazil’s agency for protecting Indigenous interests and culture, we are addressing the crisis in Rondônia, where communities face water scarcity and mercury contamination. Eugenio’s team, experts in remote areas, is securing permits. They also make the local production for The Territory, an Emmy-winning documentary.

Moreover, his NGO in South America is working directly with the Sirionó people.

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Jean Garner

Executive Producer

Team

Jean Garner

Executive Producer

Jean Garner is an Academy Award-nominated Executive Producer, Commissioning Editor, and seasoned journalist with a distinguished career spanning over three decades in high-stakes international media. A winner of a Peabody Award, two International Emmys, and a Murrow Award, she brings world-class editorial oversight and industry connectivity to the project.

Jean’s reputation as a champion of independent documentary film was cemented during her decade-long tenure at Al Jazeera English, where she served as the Senior Executive Producer for the network’s flagship observational documentary strand, Witness. Based in Washington D.C. and Doha, she oversaw the commissioning, acquisition, and production of over 400 documentaries.

Her leadership extends to hard news and complex logistical operations. From 2016 to 2023, Jean served as Senior Executive Producer for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) in Prague. There, she played a pivotal role in launching Current Time, a 24/7 Russian-language network targeting 300 million viewers, and oversaw editorial standards across 26 news bureaus in Europe and Central Asia. She led the digital transformation of the network, launching 17 daily news programs designed for social media platforms.

Prior to her documentary work, Jean was a Producer for ABC News’ “Nightline” with Ted Koppel, where she covered defining global events including the 9/11 attacks.In 2003, she was embedded with U.S. forces during the invasion of Iraq, an experience that honed her expertise in managing production safety in hostile environments.

Her credits as Executive Producer include Chau, Beyond the Lines (2016 Academy Award Nominee for Best Documentary Short), the Emmy-winning Witness series, and Srebrenica: A Witness to Destruction. She holds a Master’s in Journalism from Columbia University.

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Juliette Igier

Field Producer

Team

Juliette Igier

Field Producer

Juliette Igier is a seasoned documentary filmmaker and senior journalist with over 15 years of experience bridging European editorial standards with the complex realities of Latin America. Formerly a Chief Editor at France 24 in Paris, she has spent the last decade based in the Southern Cone, producing high-impact investigative reports for ARTE, France Télévisions, and M6 on environmental and social conflicts.
Her partnership with the director is built on a foundation of shared risk and deep trust. Juliette has been pivotal in the development of Exit from Paradise, having co-led two previous extensive expeditions into the Bolivian Amazon. Her investigative work on illegal gold mining and mercury contamination has given her a profound understanding of the geopolitical and ecological stakes, as well as an established network of contacts among local leaders, miners, and government officials.
For this production, Juliette serves as the critical link between the creative vision and the volatile reality of the terrain. She oversees the project’s most delicate logistical challenge: the "Kids’ Units." She is responsible for the ethical workflow of the participatory cinema element, managing the distribution of cameras to the children and supervising the ingestion and processing of their footage. Her role ensures that the children’s raw, spontaneous perspective is preserved and organized for the post-production pipeline.
Juliette’s expertise lies in navigating "soft to hard" ground—making rapid, high-stakes decisions in environments where weather, politics, and safety protocols shift hourly. Her credits include the award-winning Argentina: Radio Crazy (ARTE), Bolivia: The Killer Gold, and extensive coverage of indigenous rights and environmental crises across the region. She brings to the team the rigor of a newsroom manager combined with the empathy of a field documentarian.

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Roldan Jara de Alencar

Field Consultant

Team

Roldan Jara de Alencar

Field Consultant

Roldan Jara de Alencar is a specialist in indigenous rights and territorial protection with over a decade of experience on the frontlines of the Amazon. Since 2017, he has served as an official for FUNAI (National Foundation for Indigenous Peoples), the Brazilian government body responsible for indigenous policies.
Currently, Roldan holds the critical position of Regional Coordinator for FUNAI in Guajará-Mirim, Rondônia—the precise "Red Zone" where Exit from Paradise is set. In this capacity, he orchestrates field operations for territorial monitoring and protection, navigating the complex conflicts between indigenous communities and illegal extractivist industries. His role involves high-level inter-institutional articulation and the development of governance strategies for threatened territories.
Beyond his tactical field experience, Roldan brings rigorous academic and legal expertise to the project. He is a lawyer specializing in Constitutional Law and Cultural Anthropology, and holds a Master’s degree in Governance and Development. His involvement ensures that the production adheres to the strictest ethical and legal protocols required for filming within protected indigenous lands and sensitive border regions.

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Budget

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Our Ask

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Expelled from Paradise

Logline

Clips

Participants

Nicolas Muñoz

Ruth Alipaz Cuqui

Team

Nicolas Muñoz

Nicolas Muñoz

Eugenio Osagie

Eugenio Osagie

Jean Garner

Jean Garner

Juliette Igier

Juliette Igier

Roldan Jara de Alencar

Roldan Jara de Alencar

Budget

Stills

Our Ask