Film
White Building
White Building (ប៊ូឌីញ ស, Bodeng Sar) is a 2021 Cambodian drama by Kavich Neang about a young man facing the demolition of his home in Phnom Penh.[1] It was Cambodia's submission for Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards.[2][1]
Background
The White Building, an apartment block in Phnom Penh, housed a strong community of artists, including Kavich Neang's own family, until it was demolished in 2017.[3][4] Neang drew on his own childhood there.[4] His documentary Last Night I Saw You Smiling (2019) first explored the building's destruction, and White Building is his first fiction feature.[3][5]
Synopsis
Samnang, 20, is an aspiring dancer who faces the demolition of the White Building, his lifelong home. The change brings pressure from his family, friends and neighbors.[1][5] The film is told in three parts, "Blessings," "Spirit House" and "Monsoon."[3] Samnang and his two closest friends, Tol and Ah Kha, ride around Phnom Penh on a motorbike and perform hip-hop dance routines for restaurant diners.[3] The building is set for demolition, and Tol's family plans to move to France to live with relatives.[3]
A Japanese company wants to develop the site. Samnang's father, the residents' chairman, leads tense meetings where neighbors argue over whether to move or stay and fight, while the water is cut off, walls crumble and black mold spreads.[3] His father has diabetes, and an infected toe turns black. Against a doctor's advice to amputate, his parents rely on prayer and honey, the traditional remedy.[3] Through the struggle, the community still finds solidarity and joy.[5]
Production and credits
Kavich Neang wrote the screenplay with Daniel Mattes.[1] The principal cast includes Piseth Chhun, Sithan Hout and Sokha Uk, with Chinnaro Soem, Sovann Tho, Jany Min and Chandalin Y.[1] Piseth Chhun plays Samnang, Sovann Tho plays Tol and Chinnaro Soem plays Ah Kha.[3]
Anti-Archive and Apsara Films produced the film, with Xstream Pictures and Kongchak Pictures as co-production companies. Davy Chou and Marine Arrighi de Casanova were delegate producers, and Jia Zhangke was among the co-producers.[1] Douglas Seok was director of photography. Vincent Villa did the sound design, editing and re-recording mix, and Félix Rehm also edited the film. Jean-Charles Bastion composed the music.[1] Funders in Europe and Asia supported the project, including the Doha Film Institute and the Berlin International Film Festival's World Cinema Fund.[1] Les Films du Losange handles worldwide sales.[1]
Release and reception
The film premiered in the Orizzonti section of the 78th Venice Film Festival in 2021.[4][1] There, Piseth Chhun won the Orizzonti Prize for Best Actor.[1] It then screened in the First Feature Competition at the BFI London Film Festival, with Busan and Chicago to follow.[3]
Douglas Seok received an honorary mention for cinematography at the 21st LEFFEST in 2021. The film won the New Hope Award at the Malaysia International Film Festival in 2022. Kavich Neang won Best Director at the Olympia Children's Film Festival in 2022 and at the Danang International Asian Film Festival in 2023.[1] As of 2026, it streams on Amazon Prime in North America and on MUBI elsewhere.[1]
References 5
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 Anti-Archive, White Building
- ↑ Screen Daily, Cambodia selects 'White Building' as Oscar entry; first trailer revealed (September 7, 2021)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Screen Daily, 'White Building': London Review (October 11, 2021)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 M+, White Building
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 ICA, White Building
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