This sounds like an "escape fire" - see Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Escape_fire) also the Mann Gulch Fire for a real life example: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mann_Gulch_fire

One of the The Gods Must Be Crazy movies had this technique used in a wildfire in the African savannah.

This sounds like an "escape fire" (Wikipedia); see also the Mann Gulch Fire for a real life example.

One of the The Gods Must Be Crazy movies had this technique used in a wildfire in the African savannah.