Cambodia: Kalyanee Mam’s film “A River Changes Course” at Sundance Film Festival.

Cambodian Filmmaker Kalyanee Mam makes her début at Sundance with a documentary about the impacts of globalization on Cambodia.

The Cambodia documentary “A River Changes Course” premiering at the Sundance Film Festival (USA) puts a human face on globalization quagmire.

The stunning documentary is the first by a Cambodian woman to première at the Sundance Film Festival.

For Mam, an accomplished cinematographer who served as director of photography for the film “Inside Job,” this project was very personal.

Born in Cambodia.

With her parents and six siblings, she fled the brutal Khmer Rouge regime, ending up in a refugee camp for more than two years. The family immigrated to the United States when she was four years old.

Kalyanee Mam’s documentary, A River Changes Course, shot in a breathtakingly beautiful, cinéma-vérité style, breaks new ground in presenting the lives of Cambodians marching from their ancient culture into a globalized economy.

Mam spent many months deep in the Cambodian countryside, and did her own camera work for this deeply authentic, and heart-opening work.

About shared humanity, not politics or economics.

Mam’s important documentary does not focus on political or economic ideals. It is about our shared humanity.

“For me, it’s always been a personal journey. Only in exposing the beauty of the country can we keep the beauty of it. Peoples’ lives are valuable and precious, and so is the environment. If we act with clear intention, we can come up with solutions that take care of people, the environment, and the country.”

Read more:

• Cambodia Documentary Premiering at Sundance Puts Human Face on Globalization Quagmire.   (huffingtonpost.com)

• Former Cambodian refugee returns to document her homeland.    (ParkRecord.com)

Related articles:

• 2013 Sundance Docs in Focus: A RIVER CHANGES COURSE (whatnottodoc.com)
• Cambodian Documentary to Premiere at Sundance Festival (cambodiadaily.com)
• The Cost of Cambodian Progress. (alfredmeier.me)