Ethnologist Alban Bensa, returns to the area in New Caledonia where he has worked for 30 years. His Kanak collaborator, Antoine, has died but his son, Samy, has recovered his father’s books and recordings relating to Antoine’s attempts to make the multinational nickel corporation, Falconbridge, recognize the land rights of his clan to the Koniambo land. The Kanak are divided between their desire for economic development and in their desire to maintain continuity with their culture and identity.