Rithy Panh facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rithy Panh
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Rithy at the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival, 2022
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Panh Rithy
April 18, 1964 Phnom Penh, Cambodia
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| Citizenship | Cambodia • France |
| Education | Institut des hautes études cinématographiques |
| Occupation | Film director |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Awards | Un Certain Regard Albert Londres Prize Joseph Kessel Prize |
Rithy Panh (Khmer: ប៉ាន់ រិទ្ធី; born April 18, 1964) is a famous film director, author, and screenwriter from Cambodia. He is known for making documentary films.
His films often focus on what happened after the Khmer Rouge group ruled Cambodia. This was a very difficult time for the country. Rithy Panh's own family was forced to leave their home in 1975 by the Khmer Rouge. Sadly, his father, mother, sisters, and nephews died from hunger or hard work while they were held in a remote labor camp. This personal experience makes his films very powerful.
Contents
About Rithy Panh
His Early Life
Rithy Panh was born in Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia. His father worked for the government in education.
In 1975, the Khmer Rouge forced Rithy's family and many others to leave Phnom Penh. His family suffered greatly under their rule. After seeing his parents and other relatives die, he managed to escape to Thailand in 1979. He lived in a refugee camp there for a while.
Later, he moved to Paris, France. He was learning carpentry when someone gave him a video camera at a party. This sparked his interest in filmmaking. He then studied at a special film school called the Institut des hautes études cinématographiques. In 1990, he returned to Cambodia, but he still kept Paris as his home base.
His Career as a Director
Rithy Panh's first documentary film was called Site 2. It was about Cambodian refugees living in a camp near the Thai-Cambodian border. This film won a big award called "Grand Prix du Documentaire."
His 1994 film, Rice People, showed the struggles of a farming family in Cambodia after the Khmer Rouge. This film was shown at the famous Cannes Film Festival. It was also the first Cambodian film ever suggested for an Oscar.
In 2000, he made The Land of the Wandering Souls. This film showed a family's struggles and how Cambodia was changing. It followed workers digging a trench for the country's first optical fiber cable.
His 2003 documentary, S-21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine, was about the Tuol Sleng prison. This prison was used by the Khmer Rouge. The film brought together former prisoners and their former captors. It was a very powerful look at Cambodia's difficult past.
In 2005, he directed The Burnt Theatre. This drama focused on a theater group living in the burned-out remains of a theater in Phnom Penh. The theater had caught fire in 1994 and was never rebuilt.
His 2013 documentary film The Missing Picture won a top prize at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. It was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards.
Bophana Center
Rithy Panh, along with director Ieu Pannakar, helped create the Bophana Center in Phnom Penh. This center works to save Cambodia's film, photo, and audio history. The center is named after a young woman named Bophana. Her story was told in one of Rithy Panh's early films, Bophana: A Cambodian Tragedy. She suffered terribly and died at the S-21 prison.
His Views on World Events
In December 2023, Rithy Panh joined over 50 other filmmakers. They signed a public letter asking for peace and an end to harm against people in a conflict area. They also asked for help to reach those in need and for people held hostage to be set free.
Filmography
- Site 2 (1989)
- Cinéma de notre temps: Souleymane Cissé (French television) (1990)
- Cambodia: Between War and Peace (1991)
- Rice People (Neak Sre) (1994)
- Bophana: A Cambodian Tragedy (1996)
- One Evening After the War (1998)
- The Land of the Wandering Souls (2000)
- Que la barque se brise, que la jonque s'entrouvre ("Let the boat break its back, Let the junk break open") (French television) (2001)
- S-21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine (2003)
- The People of Angkor (2003)
- The Burnt Theatre (2005)
- Paper Cannot Wrap Up Embers (2007)
- The Sea Wall (2008)
- Gibier d'élevage (2011)
- Duch, Master of the Forges of Hell (2012)
- The Missing Picture (2013)
- La France est notre patrie (2015)
- Exile (2016)
- First They Killed My Father (2017) - Only producer
- Graves Without a Name (2018)
- Irradiated (2020)
- Meeting with Pol Pot (2024)
See also
In Spanish: Rithy Panh para niños
- Cinema of Cambodia
- Am Rong
