Filmmaking in Laos since 1975
After 1975 the Lao film sector became firmly subordinated to the task of building the socialist future; all private-sector film production and distribution ceased and in the following year a Cinema Department was set up under the new Ministry of Culture to manage, develop and promote the production and distribution of appropriate films for the country.
A Documentary Film Studio was set up within the Cinema Department to produce government newsreels and documentaries, initially turning out an average of five titles each year. Films produced there during the 1970s and 1980s include Kongpasoum Phouthene Thourpathet (‘Conference of Representatives from Around the Country’, 1976), Muangkhao Lao Sivithmay (‘New Lives in the Old Town’, 1980), Kongpasoum Phak Khangtisi (‘The Fourth Party Congress’, 1987), Phoumlamnao Khong Saokhongsang (‘Place of the Elephant Hunters’, 1982), Sip Bi Haeng SPP Lao (’10 Years of the Lao PDR’, 1985), and Sangsa Pathet Xat (‘Building the Country’, 1987).
In 1983 the Cinema Department made its first feature film, the docu-drama
Siengpeun Chak Thonghai (‘The Sound of Gunfire from the Plain of Jars’), which was made in 35mm Fuji colour as a co-production with Việt Nam. Directed jointly by Somchit Phonsena and Vietnamese filmmaker Phạm Ky Nam, it starred members of the
Central Spoken Drama Troupe, and recounted the heroic escape of a Lao Patriotic Front platoon after it had been encircled by Royal Lao Government troops at the Plain of Jars (Xieng Khouang Province) in 1958.
However, due to a variety of factors, including inferior technical quality, it proved incapable of generating sufficient box office revenue to recoup costs.
Notwithstanding the failure of
Siengpeun Chak Thonghai, the Cinema Department decided in 1988 to fund a second feature film, again featuring members of the Central Spoken Drama Troupe. Directed by Czech-trained Som Ok Southiphonh and shot this time on 35mm black and white film, the drama
Bouadeng (‘Red Lotus’) was set in 1972 and told the story of a family torn apart by civil war, domestic violence, poverty and the increasing conflict between traditional customs and contemporary values. However, it too failed to attract audiences and since that time no feature films have been made on celluloid in Laos.
Whilst no foreign subtitled versions of Siengpeun Chak Thonghai and Bouadeng are currently available in Laos, the Fukuoka Film Festival is reported to have copies of Bouadeng, subtitled in English and Japanese.
As economic renewal policies began to take effect after 1986, the reduction in government subsidy took a steady toll on film production and distribution. In 1988 the Cinema Department was abolished and replaced by the State Cinematographic Company, which had no production arm but was responsible solely for the distribution of foreign films and the management of cinemas.
Since the establishment of the
National Film Archive and Video Centre in 1991, documentary video production has resumed on a modest scale, although for financial and technical reasons filming in 16mm or 35mm is no longer possible. The donation by the Japanese government of professional digital cameras (4), editing and mixing equipment in 2004-5 has greatly enhanced the quality of the Centre's work.
Today most documentary work is undertaken for archival purposes on behalf of the Central Committee, the Offices of the President or Prime Minister or other governmental agencies (eg
The 7th Congress of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, 2001,
The Election of the Lao PDR National Assembly Members V Legislature, 2002), but a number of documentary films have been made for television and also made available to the public on video and VCD. In 2003 the National Film Archive and Video Centre made eight documentaries, on subject matters ranging from national celebrations (
650 Years Kingdom of Lane Xang) to tourism (
Wat Phu,
Viengsay: The Historic Town, Muang Khong and
Lao Ethnic Cultures), health (
Eat Fish for a Healthy Life) and politics (various newsreels of visits to Laos by foreign leaders). In recent years too the National Film Archive and Video Centre has begun reissuing some of its older documentary material - recent VCD releases include the afore-mentioned
Sayxana Laduleng (‘Summer Victory’, 1970) and
Daene Haeng Issara (‘Land of Freedom’, 1970),
25 Years of the Lao PDR (2000),
Old Town Luang Prabang (1980) and
President Souphannouvong (1980), all of which are now on sale at government bookshops in major centres.
Perhaps most noteworthy is the resumption in fiction filmmaking since 1997, albeit now shot on video. To date three feature-length fiction videos have been made -
Than Heng Phongphai (‘The Charming Forest’, 1997),
Falang Phone (‘Clear Skies After Rain’, 2001) and
Leum Tua (‘Wrongfulness’, 2004), all three directed by Vithoune Sundara (b 1958), Laos’ only active film director, who is also Deputy Director of the Centre. The latter two films were screened at the
National Cultural Hall and then broadcast on
Lao National Television (LNTV) before being released on video and VCD. The National Film Archive and Video Centre is keen to attract foreign funding with a view to the revival of the Lao film industry.
