Norsk filminstitutt

Artist and political activist San Zaw Htway experienced the full force of military repression in Myanmar back in 1999, when he was sentenced to 36 years in prison for involvement in the re-establishment of the banned student union. Twelve years later, under a more lenient regime, he was released. 

In 2021, an aggressive military regime seized power again in a coup, brutally crushing mass protests. Friends, relatives, and other former political prisoners write letters to San, in whom they find comfort, understanding, and good advice. Despite everything, he never lost his spirit during his years of imprisonment. 

The remarkable and sometimes shocking images of the recent demonstrations against the regime are interspersed with home videos of San. The deftly edited footage and letter excerpts tell a tragic story of an extraordinary person and a country torn apart.  

Production and distribution

Production Year:
2021
Production country:
Netherlands
Co production country:
Norway
Release date (international):
2021-11-18
Production company:
ZIN documentaire
Co production company:
Ten Thousand Images
Executive producer:
Jean Tsien
Producer:
Corinne van Egeraat
Line producer:
Natasja Möhrs
Co producer:
Mette Cheng Munthe-Kaas

Director

  • Petr Lom

    Petr Lom (b. 1968) hails from Prague, Czechoslovakia, but grew up in Canada, and received his Ph.D. in Political Philosophy from Harvard University in 1997. He gave up his academic career in 2004 to pursue a full-time career as a documentary filmmaker, making his debut with Bride Kidnapping in Kyrgyzstan the same year. He has since written, directed and produced several documentary films and television series, and runs his own documentary production company Lom Films.

    Petr Lom

Crew

Director:
Petr Lom
Cinematographer:
Bo Thet Htun
Petr Lom
Editor:
Petr Lom
Sound Design:
Mark Glynne
Olmo van Straalen
Narrator:
Yan Paing Oo
Htike Nanda Lin

Technical information

Format:
DCP 2k
Colour:
Colour
Length in min's:
25'
Subtitles:
English

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