Film makers speak out about Myanmar

Tan, Kai Syng (2023) Film makers speak out about Myanmar.

Record type: Art Design Item

Abstract

NHK: 13-minute 'In-Depth' news story on radical creative non-fiction film against military junta and colonialism in Myanmar by NHK WORLD-JAPAN NEWS 2023 (Japan Public Broadcaster) OVERVIEW: Systems of oppression are connected. ‘If we say we abolish the prison-industrial complex, we should also say abolish apartheid, and end the occupation of Palestine’, declares American revolutionary-philosopher-academic and former prisoner Angela Davis (2013). As we cry 'Free Palestine', we are also crying Free Sudan. Free Congo. Free Myanmar. Free Rohingyas. Free Kachins. Free Uyghurs. The call for self-determination is also a call for the end of the prisons, + systems that enable prisons, actual and metaphorical. The term ‘Prison industrial complex’ captures the complex and overlapping interests of government and industry that use surveillance, policing, and imprisonment as solutions to economic, social and political problems, clarifies Critical Resistance. That was why, as juror @YIDFF Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival, I chose the film ‘Losing Ground’ for a top award, as I explained in my interview with Japan Public Broadcaster @nhkworldjapan in this 13-minute 'In-Depth' story 'Filmmakers Speak Out about Myanmar' (re-posted with permission). I was proud to go on stage with @limkahwai to announce the Ogawa Shinsuke prize of New Asian Currents (curated by @m5_wakai) to a Myanmar filmmaker. As a former prisoner, they had to remain anonymous. Their film depicts the resistance by people living under military junta, through a highly-restrained and thus powerful setup. The award is our message of solidarity with all creative makers and cultural workers similarly trapped. Your art might catalyse change, I said. Is that wishful thinking? Yes. But I’m an artist. I’m allowed to. In the face of seemingly insurmountable global problems, to feel despair — or to be able to switch off social media — is a luxury. As many critical creatives like Toni Morrison remind us, ‘this is precisely the time when artists go to work’: ‘I know the world is bruised and bleeding, and though it is important not to ignore its pain, it is also critical to refuse to succumb to its malevolence. Like failure, chaos contains information that can lead to knowledge — even wisdom. Like art.’ 0'00": Introduction 1'00": On ‘Losing Ground’ 4'20": YIDFF and interview with Kaori Hizume 11 Oct 2023  5'50”: On ‘Above and Below Ground’, another film on Myanmar in New Asian Currents #FreePalestine #Ceasefire #FightFacism CONTEXTS: I was invited as to be a jury member at the prestigious Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival (YIDFF) 2023 in Japan. Yamagata is approximately two hours from Tokyo and is designated UNESCO city of film. Since 1989, YIDFF has played a vital role in the film and arts ecology, having celebrated amongst others the works of iconic post-colonialist filmmaker-composer-theorist Prof. Trinh T. Minh-ha, and Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul (whose 2021 film stars Tilda Swinton and bagged the Jury Prize at Cannes). I was judge for films for the New Asian Currents (NAC), which focuses on bold, new expressions of the documentary genre on critical issues. There was also a showcase during which I shared my films as a Director, 'How to Thrive in 2050' (2021, commissioned for BBC Culture in Quarantine) and 'Chlorine Addiction; (2000, which was at NAC 2001). REFLECTIONS: Amid the era of fake news, AI, streaming and media saturation, film — and especially the documentary film — offers exciting possibilities, not least radical ones that the NAC champions. I was proud to go on stage to announce the winner of the top prize, a filmmaker from Myanmar who had to remain anonymous, having already been imprisoned by the government. Their film Losing Ground depicts the resistance and resilience by people living under military junta through a highly-restrained and yet quietly powerful setup. We spent eight hours till early morning to make our decision, because we know how career-changing and even life-changing such a prize and the financial award can be. We want to send a strong message to this filmmaker, as well as other makers who are similarly trapped or imprisoned, physically and/or metaphorically, that we care, and that we are in solidarity with each and everyone of you, and that your films are making a difference. I’m currently working on three books exploring new definitions of ‘leadership’, with a focus on creativity, anti-oppression, futurity and hope. I was extremely honoured, to be amongst new, visionary leaders of tomorrow who can show us the future of not only documentary filmmaking, but humanity, not least given such volatile times that we find ourselves caught in.

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