Asian Films & Videos|
Available from MFDI We now have DVD's of "Amra Dujon"; "Bhor Holo, Dhor Kolo"; "Sonamoni" and "Vanishing Sholas, Vanishing Rivers" at US$19.95 each. "What Future for Yacub Ali? Country Boats in Bangladesh" - A story of a rural man who owns and operates a handmade country boat in Bangladesh. We accompany him on a river trip and learn the economics of the country boats. The video focuses on the dilemma of development funding going into the mechanized boat sector while the large handmade country boat sector is ignored. Available in English, VHS NTSC or PAL (US$54.95) - 26 minutes "Snakebite!" - A film made in India about snakebite and how to avoid being bitten. It starts with a suspenseful and superbly choreographed confrontation of man and snake. Then it goes over the story and explains what the man did wrong. The film shows the four dangerous snakes of South Asia, and explains little known information about them and the production of anti-venom serum. Awards won: 1986 International Wildlife Film Festival Best Professional Award; 1987 CINE Golden Eagle; 1988 British Medical Association Gold Award; and 1989 Medikinale International Parma Festival Gold Medal, Excellent Editing and Young People's Jury Awards. Available in English, VHS NTSC or PAL- 27 minutes (US$54.95), or in 16mm film (Call for Price) "Irulas: Hunters/Gatherers in the Space Age" – A documentary about the Irula Snake Catchers Cooperative of Madras, India. The members are tribals who used to catch snakes for their skins. Now they catch snakes to milk for anti-venom serum and set them free again, using them as a renewable resource. Available in English, VHS NTSC - 17 minutes (US$54.95) "Vanishing Sholas, Vanishing Rivers" – An introduction to the tropical mountain forests of the Palni Hills in South India, locally known as Sholas. These ancient primary forests play a critical role in regional water management, protection of bird, insect, and animal life and are an indispensable bank of floral genetic diversity. Human settlement in the hills is resulting in their disappearance. The film emphasizes their aesthetic and practical ecological value, encouraging their protection and propagation. Available in English, VHS NTSC or PAL- 14 minutes (US$54.95). 16mm film (Call for Price). "Tuna" – A program about the impact of modernization on the lives of Maldivian fisherman. Produced by Worldview International Foundation. Available in English, VHS NTSC or PAL- 35 minutes (US$54.95) "Village Women of Bangladesh: The Rice Harvest" - An intimate glimpse of the lives of women as seen through their work during the rice harvest in a traditional village. After the grain is harvested, the women, through a series of cleaning, parboiling, drying, and husking, work the grain to the end product--rice--that is income and food for the family. Produced by Devitt Jones Productions, Ltd. Available in English, VHS NTSC or PAL- 27 minutes (US$54.95). Made in the commercial Bangladesh cinema format for Bengali audiences, these videos were produced by John Riber and Directed by the late Alamgir Kabir through Worldview International Foundation/Bangladesh and Population Services International. "Bhor Holo, Dor Kolo" (It is Dawn, Open the Door) - The first in a series from Bangladesh which introduces the "model couple" (hero and heroine) and the evil money lender (villain). A retired civil servant returns to his village and teaches the hero to read. As he and Rohima fall in love, he convinces her of the value of literacy. Later, the villain tries to alter the loan deed and steal the hero's land, but now he can read and the villain is humiliated. Available in Bengali, 16mm film only - 30 minutes (Call for Price). "Amra Dujon" (Together) - The model couple get married and after each reviews his/her reasons they decide to delay the birth of their first child in a beautiful song about making decisions together. The villain tries to molest Rohima and calls the hero a castrated goat. A fight ensues, the hero wins, but the villain takes revenge that night and is caught and then humiliated in front of the village. Available in Bengali w/English subtitles, VHS NTSC or PAL - 30 minutes (US$54.95). 16mm film (Call for Price). "Sonamoni" (Golden Pearl) - The model couple have a child who gets diarrhea because the villain cuts off their access to tube-well water. They use oral rehydration solution (both packet-type and homemade sugar-salt solution when they cannot find packets in the market). The villain and his henchmen try to kill the hero in a fight, but he turns out to be quite a "kung-fu" expert and wins. He ties the villain to a tree where in the last scene a crow defecates on his face. Available in Bengali w/English subtitles, VHS NTSC or PAL - 33 minutes (US$54.95). 16mm film (Call for Price). |
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