Prof. Krippendorf, Richard Dreyfuss, is a respected anthropologist who, with his wife Jennifer, Barbara Williams, takes their three children on a hopeful quest into New Guinea to locate a lost tribe. The expedition brings joy to the family, but it ends in disappointment when the search proves unsuccessful. Back in the United States, the tragedy of Jennifer’s death leaves Krippendorf grappling with grief and financial strain, having spent the foundation grant on raising the children as a single parent. With a looming lecture at a college and fears of potential misuse of grant funds, he devises a plan to protect his livelihood and his family: he creates an imaginary tribe named the Shelmikedmu, using the names of his own kids as the tribe’s signposts. To lend credibility, he also fabricates a 16 mm “documentary” film, casting his children as members of this fictitious culture and weaving in segments from real New Guinean footage to bolster the illusion.
Anthropologist Veronica Micelli encounters the unfolding ruse and brings it to the attention of cable-TV producer Henry Spivey, pushing Krippendorf to keep crafting fraudulent footage even as Ruth Allen, a rival observer, grows suspicious. David Ogden Stiers steps into the story as Spivey, a catalyst who helps Krippendorf navigate the widening fabrication. As the deception gains fame, Krippendorf himself steps into the role of a tribal elder, while his sons Mickey and Edmund push the boundaries of the performances with ever more elaborate rituals. The eldest child, Shelly, refuses to take part, unsettled by the deceit at the core of their family project.
Veronica’s entanglement with the project deepens when Krippendorf tricks her into joining the fake documentary, a move that complicates the precarious balance between truth and fabrication. Ruth travels to New Guinea, determined to verify the location of the Shelmikedmu, and uncovers that no such tribe exists where Krippendorf claimed they would be. She relays the discovery via fax to a colleague, who steps forward to challenge Krippendorf at a formal gala. In a last-ditch flourish, Mickey improvises a lie, claiming that the Shelmikedmu are protected by a magical ritual known only to them, a feint designed to keep the ruse alive in the eyes of others.
Unknown to most characters, Shelly reaches out to the New Guineans who had befriended the family during the search, asking them to pose as the Shelmikedmu to throw Ruth off the scent. Their ruse succeeds, and the fraud is called into question, but the plan also buys Krippendorf time to reassess his priorities. The mounting pressure eases, and the scandal dissolves as the truth is no longer a simple story of deceit but a chance for healing. Krippendorf, relieved, ends the deception and begins a new chapter with Veronica, who steps in as a partner and becomes a mother to his children, offering stability and warmth after a period of upheaval.
