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​

FURTHER AND FURTHER AWAY
​​​by  Polen Ly

24min | Cambodia | 2022

A young indigenous Bunong woman and her older brother spend one last day in their rural village in northeastern Cambodia, before an impending move to the capital city in search of a more prosperous life. While her brother is excited for the move, she senses a quiet desire to return to their long-gone village that was lost to the development of a nearby hydroelectric dam a few years earlier.

Original Title Chhngai Dach Alai
Original Title (Khmer) ឆ្ងាយដាច់អាល័យ
​Year of production 2022
Length 24min
Country Cambodia
Shooting Format Digital 4K
Aspect Ratio 1.78:1​
Dialogue Bunong, Khmer
​
Director Polen Ly
Producers Daniel Mattes, Davy Chou, Sophea Kim
Production Anti-Archive
Co-Production Kongchak Pictures
Co-Producer Loy Te
Writer ​Polen Ly
Cinematographer Polen Ly
Editor Kavich Neang 
Sound Designer Vincent Villa
First Assistant Director Ouch Lath

Cast Bopha Oul, Phanny Loem

With Support From
Singapore International Film Festival
Sea-Shorts Film Grant
Momo Film Co.
International Rivers Ngo
Cambodia Film Commission
Cambodian Department Of Cinema And Cultural Diffusion


Festival selections
​Berlinale, Berlin International Film Festival 2022 Germany - World Premiere
Glasgow Short Film Festival 2022, UK
Aspen Shortsfest 2022, USA
New Directors/ New Films 2022, USA
Vienna Shorts 2022, Austria
​​Olhar de Cinema – Curitiba International Film Festival 2022, Brazil
Palm Springs International ShortFest 2022, USA - Best Live-Action Short Over 15 Minutes Award
​​
​Website
Anti-Archive

Director's Statement
I started writing this film in 2017 while researching a documentary in a rural indigenous village facing the floods of a new hydropower dam built on the local river.
Although they eventually resettled, some villagers still missed their ancestral land, where they felt independent and better connected to nature.
​The new resettlement site appeared to me as a place of conflict, between dreams of the future and memories of the past. These elements are reflected in the two characters of the film.
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