In the south of France, on the banks of the picturesque river Lot, an old army camp has been transformed into a Vietnamese village. For 24 years it has provided a home for refugees, and it is unique in having preserved an extraordinary cult of spirit possession which can no longer be found even in Vietnam.
In each of their homes, the cult members have a colourful shrine where images of the Buddha stand amid an array of spirit images, dolls sumptuously clad in robes of silk.
Among the old ladies of the cult are a select few who have been chosen as mediums, and in ceremonies which last many hours they rapidly enter trance, dancing before the shrines in the robes of the spirits which possess them.