About the Film
Shot clandestinely over a 2-year period by best-selling novelist and filmmaker, Robert H. Lieberman, this film provides a rare look at the second-most isolated country on the planet. It lifts the curtain to expose the everyday life in a country that has been held in the iron grip of a brutal military regime for 48 years.
This unique feature length documentary, culled from over 120 hours of striking images, is an impressionistic journey. Interviews and interactions with more than 100 people throughout Burma, including an interview with the recently released Aung San Suu Kyi, are interwoven with spectacular footage of this little seen nation and its people.
Though Burma has tumbled from one of the most prosperous and advanced countries in Southeast Asia to one of the world’s poorest, “They Call It Myanmar” is a story of beauty, courage and hope.
A story like this must be told worldwide – will you be publishing this on pbs.org or topdocumentaryfilms.com ???
Thank you for your suggestions, we will look further into this. The film is however now available on iTunes, Vudu, Netflix, and Amazon or you can simply purchase it here on our website. Thank you for your interest and support!
We just watched your film and were quite moved. We had intended on visiting there in February while on our trip to Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam but could not fit it in. We are definitely planning to visit there some day. I would like to know if there has been any progress in the education system. It is a tragedy that children are not able to go to school. Thank you for taking time to do this film and educate the rest of the world about what is happening in Myanmar. God Bless you.
In reply to Susan Bownam – no, the school situation is just as bad as ever. One thing the documentary only touched on briefly was the even more desperate plight of the ethnic minorities, such as the Chin and Kachin. Their prospects for getting an education are even worse than the Burmese.
We just watched the movie. It touches me in many different level, about the true meaning of life, even in a poor country, lack of the freedom to express their thinking. It is very inspiring for me. I appreciate the delicate work all of you have offered to share the lift curtain world!
I feel many people in my country (the US) have no idea how many others in the world live everyday……especially the stark contrast between the wealthy and the poor that exists. I am so glad we found your film on the Netflix service. It was very moving, and thank you for bringing their story to the world in such a beautiful way.
I love your film,, how can I get the soundtrack?
Hey Buzz, we’re happy to hear that you enjoyed it! Unfortunately, we have not yet created a final soundtrack for public distribution; however, that’s good idea and we will look into it further. Thank you for your support Buzz!
Please consider submitting this film to Film Southasia 2013, which takes place in October (Kathmandu, Nepal). FSA is a great platform for documentaries and non-fiction based around issues in South Asia, to be shared amongst others who will the same purpose of truth, justice and telling compelling stories.
Thank you, great work!!
Hi Nischal, thank you for bringing this to our attention; we are now working on our submission to Film Southasia 2013! Thank you for the encouragement!
Dear Omar Vandal and Zakir Thaver,
We came across your film “They Call it Myanmar” during our research and we would like to inform you that FSA is now calling for entries for the ninth edition of Film Southasia ’13, the festival of Southasian documentaries. The festival will be held in Kathmandu, Nepal from 3-6 October 2013. Your film would make a wonderful addition to our Festival.
Film Southasia (FSA) is a biennial festival that was set up in 1997 with the goal of popularising the documentary so that it entertains, informs and changes lives. In addition to the festival that takes place in Kathmandu every two years, FSA organizes screenings, discussions and workshops across Southasia to promote Southasian non-fiction within the Subcontinent and around the world. Film Southasia believes that film is a powerful medium that helps to not only in better represent the region internationally, but also contributes immensely in introspection and initiatives to bring change at the local level.
Entry forms are available on our newly re-energized website: http://www.filmsouthasia.org/submit/
For eligibility and all other details, please visit our website http://www.filmsouthasia.org/regulations/
Submission deadline is 30 June 2013.
Team Film Southasia’ 2013
GPO Box. 8975 EPC 1516
Arun Thapa Chowk, Jhamsikhel Lalitpur
Kathmandu, Nepal
http://www.filmsouthasia.org
http://www.facebook.com/filmsouthasia
Hello Omar and Zakir, thank you for the encouragement, recently we received a recommendation to enter Film Southasia, clearly our goals are aligned in many ways. We are currently working on our submission for the festival and look forward to the opening in October, thank you for the support!