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Tanna (2016) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Release, runtime and language
2016 · 100 min · English
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Directed by
Bentley Dean, Martin Butler

On a remote island in the South Pacific, a passionate and forbidden romance develops between Wawa, a spirited young woman, and Dain, the chief's grandson. Their connection is tested when a devastating tribal war erupts, and Wawa is unexpectedly chosen as part of a peace agreement. Torn between her love for Dain and her duty to her people, she must navigate a complex situation with far-reaching consequences for the island's future.

On this page (6)
  1. 1 Where to watch
  2. 2 Events in order (13)
  3. 3 Timeline questions answered
  4. 4 Movie threads
  5. 5 Movies like Tanna
  6. 6 Every angle
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13 events in order · contains spoilers

Tanna Timeline: Events in Chronological Order

Every key event of Tanna (2016) in order, scene by scene, with when and where it takes place. Use it to untangle flashbacks, time jumps and parallel storylines, to refresh your memory before the sequel or to find the exact scene you are thinking of.

  1. Kastom marriage rules and a secret romance begins

    On the island of Tanna, Kastom dictates arranged marriages that shape the community's fate. Tensions with the rival Imedin tribe flare as the two groups clash over tradition and power. Within this world, Dain and Wawa begin a secret love affair that challenges the expected path.

    Where
    Kastom village, Tanna
  2. Selin steals the penis sheath and defies the forbidden zone

    Selin, Wawa's younger sister, brazenly steals a penis sheath and flees into the wilderness. She is firmly rebuked for entering the forbidden zone where the Imedin have massacred their people before. The act sets in motion a broader lesson about respect and obedience to Kastom.

    Where
    Kastom village; wilderness
  3. Shaman takes Selin to Yahul and the volcanoes

    Selin's grandfather, the tribe's shaman, takes her to the sacred site of Yahul and the surrounding volcanoes to teach her respect. The journey links ritual space with the community's laws and the natural world. This moment foreshadows the dangers looming from rival forces.

    Where
    Yahul sacred site and volcanoes
  4. Imedin attack mortally wounds the shaman

    While Selin is away with the shaman, the Imedin launch a brutal attack on the shaman and club him, leaving him mortally wounded. The village reels from the shock, seeing the elder leadership wounded and the balance of power unsettled. The attack heightens fears that the Imedin will strike again.

    Where
    Yahul site / vicinity
  5. Selin escapes and villagers fear vulnerability

    Selin escapes back to her people after the assault, bringing news of the shaman's peril. The shaman is carried back to the village, and everyone fears that his death will leave them vulnerable to attack. The community scrambles to defend themselves while mourning their leader.

    Where
    Kastom village
  6. Imedin peace talks and the pigs trade; Wawa promised to marry

    The Imedin are summoned to the village to make peace, and pigs are traded as part of the accord. The murderers who killed the shaman club pigs to death in the same ritual, reinforcing the cycle of violence. In this fragile moment, Wawa is promised in marriage to a member of the Imedin.

    Where
    Kastom village
  7. Dain and Wawa continue their affair despite the arranged marriage

    Despite the arranged marriage looming over them, Dain and Wawa persist in their secret relationship. The community is torn between tradition and the undeniable pull of their love. The situation becomes a test of loyalty, rules, and personal desire.

    Where
    Kastom village
  8. Elders plead; women sympathize; peers warn of revenge

    Elders urge Wawa to accept the arranged marriage, emphasizing the consequences of crossing Kastom. Elder women express sympathy for the strain on Wawa, while peers argue that her decision affects the whole community. The risk of Imedin revenge adds urgency to preserving traditional order.

    Where
    Kastom village
  9. Wawa reveals she had sex with Dain; Dain is exiled

    Wawa confesses that she has already had sex with Dain, which makes her unacceptable to the Imedin regardless. The confession marks a turning point as the village condemns the couple and exiles Dain from the community. The exiling underscores the power of tradition over personal happiness.

    Where
    Kastom village
  10. Wawa and Dain flee to the wilderness and hide by the volcano

    Wawa and Dain flee together, seeking safety in the wilderness and hiding on the slope of the volcano. Their separation from the village marks the collapse of the formal social order in favor of a doomed, personal devotion. The search by both sides intensifies as the lovers cling to each other in danger.

    Where
    Volcanic slope / wilderness
  11. The lovers eat poison mushrooms

    In a desperate act, the lovers eat poison mushrooms, choosing escape through death rather than life under prohibitive rules. The mushrooms symbolize both the despair of their situation and the ultimate price of breaking Kastom. Their act closes a tragic arc between love and tradition.

    Where
    Wilderness near volcano
  12. The community buries the lovers and reframes tradition

    Their people bury them, marking the end of the immediate conflict yet leaving the community to confront its own laws. The elders decide that love marriage must be recognized within Kastom to keep their culture alive. This conclusion suggests a new compromise between tradition and personal happiness.

    Where
    Kastom village burial site
  13. A new Kastom: recognition of love marriage

    The elders conclude that recognizing love marriage is necessary for the survival of Kastom, balancing respect for elders with the needs of individuals. The tragedy of Wawa and Dain catalyzes a cultural shift toward inclusivity in marriage norms. The community's commitment to adaptation marks the final evolution of their customs.

    Where
    Kastom village

Last updated: October 09, 2025 at 16:23

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Timeline questions answered

Tanna Timeline Explained: Your Questions Answered

When does it happen, and why in that order? The questions people ask about the chronology of Tanna (2016): time jumps, flashbacks, cause and effect between scenes and the correct order of events, each answered with spoilers.

Q1

Why was Wawa promised in marriage to the Imedin?

Wawa was promised to the Imedin tribe as part of a peace agreement after the Imedin attacked and mortally wounded her grandfather, the tribe's shaman. The elders offered Wawa as a bride to stop the cycle of violence and establish peace between the two tribes.

  • wawa
  • iedin
  • marriage
  • peace agreement
  • shaman
Q2

Why did the Imedin attack and kill the shaman?

The Imedin attacked the shaman at the sacred site of Yahul near the volcanoes. While the exact motivation isn't fully explained, the attack appears to be part of the ongoing tribal conflict between the two groups, with the Imedin targeting the spiritual leader to weaken the Kastom tribe.

Foreshadowing: The tension between the tribes was established early through sporadic conflicts over tradition and power.

  • iedin
  • shaman
  • attack
  • yahul
  • volcanoes
Q3

Why was Dain exiled from the village?

Dain was exiled because Wawa publicly confessed that she had already had sex with him, making her unacceptable to the Imedin as a bride. This act of defiance against the arranged marriage and Kastom traditions angered the elders, who banished Dain as punishment.

  • dain
  • exile
  • marriage
  • kastom
  • tradition
Q4

Why did Wawa reveal she had slept with Dain?

Wawa confessed she had sex with Dain to force the elders to accept that she could no longer marry into the Imedin tribe. By revealing this, she hoped to break the arranged marriage and be free to be with Dain, though the confession ultimately led to Dain's exile.

  • wawa
  • dain
  • confession
  • iedin
  • marriage
Q5

Why did Wawa and Dain eat poison mushrooms?

After being exiled and hunted by both their own people and the Imedin, Wawa and Dain chose to eat poison mushrooms as a way to escape their impossible situation. Rather than live separated by tradition or face the consequences of defying Kastom, they chose death together.

Foreshadowing: The lovers' desperate situation was foreshadowed by their continued defiance despite increasing pressure from elders and the threat of Imedin revenge.

  • poison mushrooms
  • death
  • suicide
  • wawa
  • dain
Q6

How did the peace agreement between the tribes work?

The peace agreement involved the Imedin coming to the Kastom village to negotiate. Pigs were traded as part of the accord, and the same Imedin who killed the shaman symbolically clubbed the pigs to death in a ritual mimicking their violence, acknowledging the cycle of killing while agreeing to peace.

  • peace
  • pigs
  • iedin
  • kastom
  • treaty
Q7

What was the forbidden zone Selin entered?

The forbidden zone was an area in the wilderness where the Imedin had previously massacred people from the Kastom tribe. Selin entered this zone after stealing a penis sheath, and her transgression prompted her grandfather the shaman to take her to the sacred site to teach her respect.

  • selin
  • forbidden zone
  • massacre
  • wilderness
Q8

Why did the elders decide to recognize love marriage in Kastom?

The elders decided to add love-based marriage to Kastom after witnessing the tragedy of Wawa and Dain's deaths. They concluded that their rigid tradition had caused the lovers' suicide and that recognizing love marriages was necessary to keep their culture alive and relevant.

  • kastom
  • elders
  • love marriage
  • tradition
  • culture change
Q9

What happened to Wawa and Dain after they died?

After Wawa and Dain died from eating poison mushrooms, their people came to find them and buried them in the village. Their deaths became the catalyst for cultural change, though their burial marked a tragic end to their personal story.

  • burial
  • death
  • bodies
  • village
Q10

Why were the pigs killed during the peace talks?

The pigs were killed by the same Imedin men who had murdered the shaman, using the same clubbing method. This ritual act symbolized the cycle of violence and death, demonstrating the Imedin's acknowledgment of their crimes while agreeing to the peace terms.

  • pigs
  • killing
  • peace ritual
  • iedin
  • shaman

Movie threads

More Movies Like Tanna, by Mood & Story

Curated lists built around what makes Tanna tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Movies about forbidden love and cultural duty like Tanna

Passionate romances torn apart by the heavy weight of duty and ancient customs. If you were moved by the tragic romance in Tanna, discover other movies like it. These films explore passionate, star-crossed lovers forced to choose between their hearts and the ancient traditions of their families or communities, often with bittersweet or heavy conclusions.

  • forbidden love
  • tragic
  • tense
  • passionate
  • somber
  • desperate
  • Tone: tense, tragic, passionate
  • Pacing: steady, building to a crisis
Why these movies?

The story pattern: The narrative follows lovers who form a deep, secret bond that violates a core tenet of their society. Their happiness is short-lived as external pressures—an arranged marriage, a tribal war, or strict cultural laws—force a devastating choice, pitting their love against their duty, with profound consequences for themselves and their world.

Why they belong together: These movies are grouped by their central, agonizing conflict between intense personal romance and inflexible communal obligation. They share a heavy emotional weight, a tense tone from the constant threat of discovery, and often conclude with a bittersweet or tragic resolution that underscores the cost of challenging tradition.

Movies about isolated cultures and survival like Tanna

Stories where characters are emotionally trapped by the geographic and social confines of their world. For viewers who appreciated the setting of Tanna, this list collects movies like it that are set within remote, tradition-bound societies. These films explore the claustrophobic feeling of being trapped by geography and custom, and the desperate acts taken to survive or change one's fate.

  • claustrophobic
  • tribal tradition
  • cultural survival
  • desperate
  • somber
  • isolated setting
  • Tone: somber, tense, desperate
  • Pacing: steady, deliberate
Why these movies?

The story pattern: The narrative unfolds within a remote, insular community—an island, a village, a sect—where ancient laws govern every aspect of life. A character's attempt to break free or follow their heart creates a crisis that threatens not just their own survival but the delicate balance of the entire community, leading to a desperate and somber conclusion.

Why they belong together: These films share a powerful, claustrophobic mood created by isolated settings and rigid social structures. They are united by a high-stakes conflict between the individual and the collective, a steady pacing that builds tension methodically, and a heavy, often tragic emotional tone centered on cultural preservation and personal sacrifice.

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Movies Like Tanna

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Every angle

Tanna (2016) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

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