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Filmography - Area Studies: South Asia, Southeast Asia, Oceania: Laos

Titles available on DVD and streaming video as of January 2017

Area Studies: Laos

Titles available on DVD and streaming video as of April 2011.

Most streaming videos listed are available exclusively to AU students, staff and faculty after an online authentications by AUID#.

Filmographies are created by doing multiple keyword searches in the ALADIN catalog to capture as many titles on a topic as possible. For complete up-to-date holdings (including VHS tapes) please refer to the library ALADIN catalog (www.catalog.wrlc.org).

Note: Vietnam War and War on Terror (in Afghanistan) are addressed in specific filmographies on those topics. Feature films are also excluded from this list with the exception of a few that depict important historical events that aren’t well covered by documentaries (e.g. The Killing Fields).

 

 

Bombies. 2001. 1 videodisc (57 min.). Millions of cluster bombs were dropped on Laos during the Vietnam War. This film explains the devastation that is still being wrought on the people of Laos by the remaining unexploded bombs. DVD 4330

Daughters and sons: preventing child trafficking in the Golden Triangle. 2008. 1 videodisc (25 min.). A documentary about the efforts of Sompop Jantraka, founder of the Development & Education Program for Daughters and Communities (DEPDC), to combat the trafficking of children in the sex slave trade in Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), and Laos by convincing their families that education is a better alternative. DVD 4120

Journey into Buddhism. 2007. 1 videodisc (81 min.). Journey through legendary rivers to the greatest Buddhist temples and mystical sites of Laos, Thailand, and Burma. Explore the different cultural representations of this universal icon of inner peace. DVD 3492

Laos: Culture, Development, and Heritage Protection. 2009. 1 streaming video (28 min.). In Luang Prabang, amidst the customary begging of Buddhist monks and the irksome giddiness of camera-wielding tourists, history lies waiting on street after street of traditional architecture. This program takes viewers into the heart of the Laotian city, where builders and bureaucrats contest the fate of land, houses, and public structures while traditional artisans and architects work to preserve an ancient heritage. Highlighting cooperation between the city planning office and French investment programs, the film examines the impact of illegal construction, colonialism, and new building regulations on the cultural landscape. A renovated hospital, a roof tile production center, and wetland development are among several specific topics. Part of the series Sustainable Development: The World Challenge. Streaming video
http://proxyau.wrlc.org/login?url=http://digital.films.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?aid=8604&xtid=41971

Laos: In the Shadow of the Giants. 1998. 1 streaming video (47 min.). Impoverished, sparsely populated, and still recovering from the Vietnam War, Laos exists on the edge of the abyss. This program considers the cultural and economic impact on Laotians and Hmong alike of initiatives designed to improve the country, such as the new highway being built by Swedish engineers. Although the regime's reeducation campsshow no signs of being closed and antigovernment rebels continue to make travel dangerous, foreign tourism is being courted for the currency it can bring, while the country's rich spiritual life-expressed through the practices of Buddhism and animism-serenely continues. Streaming video
http://proxyau.wrlc.org/login?url=http://digital.films.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?aid=8604&xtid=10115

Laos: So You Think the War Is Over. 2009. 1 streaming video (25 min.). Streaming video
http://proxyau.wrlc.org/login?url=http://digital.films.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?aid=8604&xtid=41926

Moving mountains: the story of the Yiu Mien. 1989. 1 streaming video (58 min). Focuses on the Yiu Mien people of Laos and the problems they face adjusting to life in the United States after the Vietnam War. Streaming video
http://www.folkstreams.net/film,149

Senegal, Tunisia, and Laos: The Private Sector in Economic Growth. 2009. 1 streaming video (26 min.). Does the future of capitalism favor the global corporations of the West-or small, competitive businesses that are homegrown in the developing world? This program offers valuable case studies that clearly illustrate both the challenges and the enormous potential of non-Western entrepreneurship. In Senegal, plastics manufacturer SIMPA has obtained funding for equipment upgrades and employee training, while clothing designer Kali Abu Sol has opened a Dakar boutique and is moving full steam toward international recognition. The film's Tunisia segment features the Hannibal Clinic, a state-of-the-art cancer treatment center, and the Laos portion covers fair trade measures for boosting coffee production, quality, and profitability. Part of the series Sustainable Development: The World Challenge. Streaming video
http://proxyau.wrlc.org/login?url=http://digital.films.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?aid=8604&xtid=41978

Thailand: King, Combat, and Ad Karabao. 1998. 1 streaming video (48 min.). Unlike its neighbors, Thailand has never been colonized or annexed-but keeping it that way has been a stern challenge. This program examines Thailand's political independence, which is based on democratic and generally peaceful rule by a culturally supported monarchy. However, growing dissatisfaction has caused grass-roots dissent, as demonstrated by the lyrics of pop music idol d Karabao, who protests against imported consumer goods, and the agitation of Ubon Without a Border,a group lobbying for open access with Laos and Cambodia. The powerful yet incongruous influences of Thai boxing and Buddhism are also assessed. Streaming video
http://proxyau.wrlc.org/login?url=http://digital.films.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?aid=8604&xtid=10114