Taste of the Land

Taste of the Land poster

In the Khmer language, the root word for “nature” and “country” is cheate, meaning “taste”: to truly understand the essence of the land, one must know it through the senses. Since fleeing Cambodia with her family during the Khmer Rouge regime, and a genocide which devastated an entire culture and displaced millions of people from their homes, award-winning documentary filmmaker Kalyanee Mam has spent much of her life searching for a rooted connection to place. This film follows her to the landscapes of her homeland—changing through deforestation, industrialization, urbanization and development—where she has spent years tenderly documenting the disappearing, relational ways of life held within them. As she comes to know these places not only through the lens of her camera, but through the intimate relationships she forms with the landscapes and people whose stories she shares, Kalyanee awakens an ancestral memory of the taste of the land that lies within.

Director: Adam Loften, Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee
Genre: Documentary
Runtime: 70 min

Cast

Production: Emergence Magazine
Language: Khmer, English
Original Language: en
More Films by Director: Adam Loften, Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee
More Films in Genre: Documentary

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Taste of the Land about?
In the Khmer language, the root word for “nature” and “country” is cheate, meaning “taste”: to truly understand the essence of the land, one must know it through the senses. Since fleeing Cambodia with her family during the Khmer Rouge regime, and a genocide which devastated an entire culture and displaced millions of people from their homes, award-winning documentary filmmaker Kalyanee Mam has spent much of her life searching for a rooted connection to place. This film follows her to the landscapes of her homeland—changing through deforestation, industrialization, urbanization and development—where she has spent years tenderly documenting the disappearing, relational ways of life held within them. As she comes to know these places not only through the lens of her camera, but through the intimate relationships she forms with the landscapes and people whose stories she shares, Kalyanee awakens an ancestral memory of the taste of the land that lies within.
Who directed Taste of the Land?
Taste of the Land was directed by Adam Loften, Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee.
Who stars in Taste of the Land?
Taste of the Land stars Kalyanee Mam.
How long is Taste of the Land?
Taste of the Land has a runtime of 1h 10m (70 minutes).
What genre is Taste of the Land?
Taste of the Land is a Documentary film.