Oscar-Nominated Cambodian Director to Discuss Film at Art Theatre in Long Beach
Following its US premiere last week at Long Beach’s Art Theatre, The Missing Picture’s director, Cambodian filmmaker Rithy Panh, will appear at the Art himself to discuss the film that has earned his home country its first Oscar nomination.
Joining Panh will be producer Catherine Dussart, who will also be accompanying Panh to the Academy Awards this Sunday, March 2. They are scheduled to appear the Saturday beforehand.
The Missing Picture explores the time between 1975 and 1979, when Panh was 13 and Cambodia came under the rule of dictator Pol Pot and his pillaging Khmer Rouge regime. Panh—already a respected Cambodian filmmaker who has tackled the subject of the country’s darkest era through pieces such as S-21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine in 2003 and Duch, Master of the Forges of Hell in 2012—decided to tell his personal tale with his latest filming endeavor.
Co-sponsoring the event with the Art Theatre is the Cambodia Town Film Festival (CTFF).
“One of the reasons we founded a Cambodia Town Film Festival was that we wanted to contribute to the resurgence of Cambodian arts and cinema after its 40 years of decline,” CTFF co-founder Caylee So told the Post when it was first announced the film would premiere in Long Beach. “We had felt an energy that no longer wanted to be contained, and we wanted a way to provide support. What better way than to be proud of our culture?”
The event will take place Saturday, March 1, at 3PM at the Art Theatre located at 2025 E 4th Street. Tickets are available by clicking here.