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The story
In a remote village near the temple of Banteay Srei, in the Kingdom of Cambodia, lives a family burdened not only by poverty but by the deep psychological trauma that has marked the entire nation.
As a young woman, the grandmother danced at the royal palace, but the horrific genocide of the Khmer Rouge wiped out every form of art, education and spiritual tradition in Cambodia. She lived through the unspeakable pain of watching her family killed before her eyes, and escaped by a miracle, carrying her little daughter in her arms.
The daughter later grew up, married a farmer and had children of her own, but none of them could ever understand the inhuman pain that still haunted the grandmother. She never spoke about what had happened — in fact, she hardly spoke at all. Day after day she lived in a daze, unable to feel any emotion. From an early age, her granddaughter, young Manin, was deeply troubled by her grandmother's state.
One day, after a visit to a Buddhist temple, Manin comes upon a mystical sign calling her to the temple of the ancient dancing goddesses, the Apsaras*. She follows the sign, and a miracle happens. A stone Apsara tells the girl that she has been watching over her for many years, that she can read her heart and sees the purity of her soul. The Apsara decides to step out of the stone and pass the legacy of her Mystical Dance on to the girl. The grandmother witnesses the Sacred Dance being handed down to her granddaughter.
In that moment, her clarity and memory return. With Manin's help, she decides to teach the village children to dance and opens a village school of Sacred Dance, reviving ancient traditions and values.
* Apsaras are dancing celestial beings carved in stone on Cambodian temples. Legends say they are intermediaries between our reality and the spiritual realm and can teach people the arts.
In a remote village near the temple of Banteay Srei, in the Kingdom of Cambodia, lives a family burdened not only by poverty but by the deep psychological trauma that has marked the entire nation.
As a young woman, the grandmother danced at the royal palace, but the horrific genocide of the Khmer Rouge wiped out every form of art, education and spiritual tradition in Cambodia. She lived through the unspeakable pain of watching her family killed before her eyes, and escaped by a miracle, carrying her little daughter in her arms.
The daughter later grew up, married a farmer and had children of her own, but none of them could ever understand the inhuman pain that still haunted the grandmother. She never spoke about what had happened — in fact, she hardly spoke at all. Day after day she lived in a daze, unable to feel any emotion. From an early age, her granddaughter, young Manin, was deeply troubled by her grandmother's state.
One day, after a visit to a Buddhist temple, Manin comes upon a mystical sign calling her to the temple of the ancient dancing goddesses, the Apsaras*. She follows the sign, and a miracle happens. A stone Apsara tells the girl that she has been watching over her for many years, that she can read her heart and sees the purity of her soul. The Apsara decides to step out of the stone and pass the legacy of her Mystical Dance on to the girl. The grandmother witnesses the Sacred Dance being handed down to her granddaughter.
In that moment, her clarity and memory return. With Manin's help, she decides to teach the village children to dance and opens a village school of Sacred Dance, reviving ancient traditions and values.
* Apsaras are dancing celestial beings carved in stone on Cambodian temples. Legends say they are intermediaries between our reality and the spiritual realm and can teach people the arts.
THE GIFT
THE GIFT
2015. Duration: 21 min.
2015. Duration: 21 min.
FESTIVALS AND PRIZES
“The Gift” has been selected for international film festivals and received an Award of Merit:
Ravynn Karet-Coxen:
“Powerful short film capturing the essence of the Khmer soul in all its dignity, reserved emotion and pain still haunting so many in the rural areas and the dream and hope of the younger generation. This story of a grandmother, former classical dancer numbed with agony and torment by the horrific loss of husband, children, family, friends but also her breath, the passion of the dance. Living in limbo with her only surviving daughter and family imbued by her affliction. Suddenly all is lifted and the flame is shining when she discovers the shared passion of her granddaughter seeking the mystery of the stone Apsara to become one, and the grandmother is able to liberate herself from the heavy burden and revive her passion by transmitting it.”
In 1994, Ravynn Karet-Coxen founded the Nginn Karet Foundation for Children, Cambodia, whose primary purpose is securing basic needs for rural village people. Since then she has developed programs focused on clean water, hygiene, health care, vaccination, nutrition, malaria awareness, agricultural training, education and literacy. The foundation works with more than two thousand families in villages of the Banteay Srei district. She has also founded a traditional Khmer dance school for the children of these families under the patronage of HRH Princess Buppha Devi. www.nkfc.org
- Award of Merit – International Film Festival for Peace, Inspiration and Equality (Jakarta, Indonesia)
- Film Festival I See God (Moscow, Russia) – official competition
- Farcume: Festival Internacional de Curtas-Metragens de Faro (Faro, Portugal) – official competition
- SILA FESTIVAL (San Pietro Magisano, Italy) – official competition
- International Film and Music Gathering MEDIAWAVE (Fort Monostor, Hungary) – official competition
Ravynn Karet-Coxen:
“Powerful short film capturing the essence of the Khmer soul in all its dignity, reserved emotion and pain still haunting so many in the rural areas and the dream and hope of the younger generation. This story of a grandmother, former classical dancer numbed with agony and torment by the horrific loss of husband, children, family, friends but also her breath, the passion of the dance. Living in limbo with her only surviving daughter and family imbued by her affliction. Suddenly all is lifted and the flame is shining when she discovers the shared passion of her granddaughter seeking the mystery of the stone Apsara to become one, and the grandmother is able to liberate herself from the heavy burden and revive her passion by transmitting it.”
In 1994, Ravynn Karet-Coxen founded the Nginn Karet Foundation for Children, Cambodia, whose primary purpose is securing basic needs for rural village people. Since then she has developed programs focused on clean water, hygiene, health care, vaccination, nutrition, malaria awareness, agricultural training, education and literacy. The foundation works with more than two thousand families in villages of the Banteay Srei district. She has also founded a traditional Khmer dance school for the children of these families under the patronage of HRH Princess Buppha Devi. www.nkfc.org
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