Films from Bhutan are rare on this side of the Globe and we are always happy when one comes our way, even more so when it’s as charming as “Lunana: a Yak in the Classroom”, Pawo Choyning Dorji’s highland-based drama that is having its World Premiere at the London Film Festival. The director – who also wrote it and produced it – had jumped to the international film business attention not long ago for producing “Hema Hema: Sing Me A Song While I Wait”, one of the movie that contributed to place Bhutan on the filmmaking and festival map.
“Jiseok” is screening at Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema
Thimphu is Bhutan’s capital city and like in many other places connectivity and access that technology and social media bring with them has crept into the dreams and desires of young people. Ugyen (Sherab Dorji) for example, cannot wait...
“Jiseok” is screening at Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema
Thimphu is Bhutan’s capital city and like in many other places connectivity and access that technology and social media bring with them has crept into the dreams and desires of young people. Ugyen (Sherab Dorji) for example, cannot wait...
- 3/7/2023
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
In a time when bigger is assumed to be better, especially in terms of budget and star power, “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom” scored a surprising Oscar nomination for Best International Feature, the first ever for Bhutan, a country in the Himalayas with a population of less than 800,000.
In the Covid era, however, the film’s core messaging of a simple life, where people help people and educators are worthy of honor and praise, resonates more strongly than ever. So many of us discovered the importance of these values during the pandemic, and Ugyen (Sherab Dorji), the film’s protagonist, realizes it through a crisis of his own.
When we first meet Ugyen, he is an unsatisfied teacher working in Thimphu, the nation’s capital, with dreams of escaping to Australia and becoming a singer, despite his grandmother’s insistence that being a teacher and a civil servant is...
In the Covid era, however, the film’s core messaging of a simple life, where people help people and educators are worthy of honor and praise, resonates more strongly than ever. So many of us discovered the importance of these values during the pandemic, and Ugyen (Sherab Dorji), the film’s protagonist, realizes it through a crisis of his own.
When we first meet Ugyen, he is an unsatisfied teacher working in Thimphu, the nation’s capital, with dreams of escaping to Australia and becoming a singer, despite his grandmother’s insistence that being a teacher and a civil servant is...
- 3/21/2022
- by Ronda Racha Penrice
- The Wrap
Raised by his grandmother after his parents’ deaths, Ugyen (Sherab Dorji) is considered lucky by his friends. He became a teacher and is just one year away from finishing his mandatory government contract, yet the thing he’s discovered most during that time is the unfortunate truth that his heart isn’t in it. So while he’ll complete his tenure, his dream of immigrating to Australia to pursue a singing career is all that’s on his mind. And everyone knows it—including his boss. As punishment for his constant tardiness and obvious disinterest, she declares that his final posting will be at the so-called “most remote school in the world.” At almost twice the elevation of Bhutanese capital city Thimphu and an eight-day hike from the nearest town, Lunana awaits.
Pawo Choyning Dorji’s feature debut Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom captures the juxtaposition of big-city living...
Pawo Choyning Dorji’s feature debut Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom captures the juxtaposition of big-city living...
- 2/15/2022
- by Jared Mobarak
- The Film Stage
Ugyen (Sherab Dorji) is a government-contracted teacher who doesn’t want to teach in Pawo Choyning Dorji’s Oscar-shortlisted debut film Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom. It was submitted for consideration for last year’s Academy Award for International Feature, but was not accepted because the South Asian nation hadn’t submitted a film since its lone entry in 1999. Beating the odds, Dorji’s film made the International Feature shortlist — making Bhutan one of three countries to make the cut for the first time, along with Kosovo and Panama.
In the film, Ugyen dreams of traveling to Australia to become a singer, but he has another year on his contract before he can quit. He resides in large city in Bhutan, but when his supervisor notices he’s slacking at work, he’s transferred to a remote village called Lunana.
When Ugyen gets off the bus, he meets Michen...
In the film, Ugyen dreams of traveling to Australia to become a singer, but he has another year on his contract before he can quit. He resides in large city in Bhutan, but when his supervisor notices he’s slacking at work, he’s transferred to a remote village called Lunana.
When Ugyen gets off the bus, he meets Michen...
- 1/19/2022
- by Valerie Complex
- Deadline Film + TV
The trusty old tale of a city slicker teacher being posted to a school in the sticks is given a fresh coat of paint in the delightful Bhutanese comic drama “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom.” Gloriously filmed on staggeringly beautiful locations around the most remote school on Earth and wonderfully performed by a cast comprised almost exclusively of first-time actors, this big-hearted crowd-pleaser marks a bright debut for writer-director Pawo Choyning Dorji. After winning audience awards at numerous festivals including Palm Springs and Cairo, “Lunana” will line up as Bhutan’s official entry in this year’s Oscar international feature race.
Premiering at London in 2019, “Lunana” was forced to withdraw from the 2020 international Oscar category on a technicality related to the formal nomination process. It’s fair and correct for this charmer to now be accepted and become the Himalayan country’s first submission since Khyentse Norbu’s 1999 hit “The Cup,...
Premiering at London in 2019, “Lunana” was forced to withdraw from the 2020 international Oscar category on a technicality related to the formal nomination process. It’s fair and correct for this charmer to now be accepted and become the Himalayan country’s first submission since Khyentse Norbu’s 1999 hit “The Cup,...
- 12/19/2021
- by Richard Kuipers
- Variety Film + TV
Pawo Choyning Dorji’s directorial debut “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom” has been selected to represent Bhutan in the international feature race at the Oscars.
“Lunana: A Yak In The Classroom” is the second Oscar entry from Bhutan, a landlocked country in South Asia. The first official Bhutanese Oscar submission was in 1999 with Khyentse Norbu’s “The Cup,” a Tibetan-language drama.
The selection of “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom” was confirmed by the Ministry of Information and Communications of the Royal Government of Bhutan on Tuesday.
“Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom,” which was released in Bhutan on Feb. 2, shot on solar-charged batteries, on location at the world’s most remote school in the Himalayan glaciers.
The film follows the journey of a teacher, Ugyen, who is sent to Lunana in northern Bhutan for his final year of training. The high altitude and the lack of amenities make...
“Lunana: A Yak In The Classroom” is the second Oscar entry from Bhutan, a landlocked country in South Asia. The first official Bhutanese Oscar submission was in 1999 with Khyentse Norbu’s “The Cup,” a Tibetan-language drama.
The selection of “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom” was confirmed by the Ministry of Information and Communications of the Royal Government of Bhutan on Tuesday.
“Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom,” which was released in Bhutan on Feb. 2, shot on solar-charged batteries, on location at the world’s most remote school in the Himalayan glaciers.
The film follows the journey of a teacher, Ugyen, who is sent to Lunana in northern Bhutan for his final year of training. The high altitude and the lack of amenities make...
- 9/15/2020
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Pawo Choyning Dorji is a photographer, filmmaker and the author from Bhutan. His photos have been published in international magazines and newspapers including Life, Esquire, Vice and The Wall Street Journal, and his books of photography include “Seeing Sacred: Lights & Shadows Along the Journey” and “Sacred Paths” and “Light of the Moon: The Life & Legacy of Xuanzang of Tang”. He has been working for the Khyentse Labrang since 2006 and is married to Taiwanese actress, Stephanie Lai.
His first brush with cinema was as an assistant director for Khyentse Norbu’s “Vara: A Blessing” and then he went on producing Norbu’s “Hema Hema: Sing Me a Song While I Wait”. “Lunana: a Yak in the Classroom” is his directorial debut and had its World Premiere in London.
Kelden Lhamo Gurung (as Saldon), Sherab Dorji (as Ugyen) and Ugyen Norbu Lhendup (as Michen) are the first-time actors starring in “Lunana: a Yak in the Classroom...
His first brush with cinema was as an assistant director for Khyentse Norbu’s “Vara: A Blessing” and then he went on producing Norbu’s “Hema Hema: Sing Me a Song While I Wait”. “Lunana: a Yak in the Classroom” is his directorial debut and had its World Premiere in London.
Kelden Lhamo Gurung (as Saldon), Sherab Dorji (as Ugyen) and Ugyen Norbu Lhendup (as Michen) are the first-time actors starring in “Lunana: a Yak in the Classroom...
- 10/18/2019
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
Films from Bhutan are rare on this side of the Globe and we are always happy when one comes our way, even more so when it’s as charming as “Lunana: a Yak in the Classroom”, Pawo Choyning Dorji’s highland-based drama that is having its World Premiere at the London Film Festival. The director – who also wrote it and produced it – had jumped to the international film business attention not long ago for producing “Hema Hema: Sing Me A Song While I Wait”, one of the movie that contributed to place Bhutan on the filmmaking and festival map.
“Lunana: a Yak in The Classroom” is screening at the BFI London Film Festival 2019
Thimphu is Bhutan’s capital city and like in many other places connectivity and access that technology and social media bring with them has crept into the dreams and desires of young people. Ugyen (Sherab Dorji) for example,...
“Lunana: a Yak in The Classroom” is screening at the BFI London Film Festival 2019
Thimphu is Bhutan’s capital city and like in many other places connectivity and access that technology and social media bring with them has crept into the dreams and desires of young people. Ugyen (Sherab Dorji) for example,...
- 10/6/2019
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
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