Gyalmu’s House
In 2015 an earthquake of terrible power devastated the Langtang Valley in Nepal, taking hundreds of lives from the small community. A year later Nima Gyalmu, a woman of extraordinary strength, dignity and humour rebuilds her house while trying to come to terms with her new world.
Interview with Directors/Producers Asmita Shrish & Gavin Carver
Watch Gyalmu’s House here:
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
The original plan was to make an observational documentary about a teahouse high in the Himalayas, but as we were planning it the terrible 2015 earthquake struck and clearly it was not the right time. However Asmita, one of the film’s directors, knew a lady in the Langtang region who was trying to rebuild her life after the quake, and a year on it seemed appropriate and necessary to tell her story.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
It’s a story of great courage, humanity and strength in the face of terrible disaster – it is moving, questioning and uplifting. It also shows a way of life, in a remote but beautiful part of the world of life that may not be familiar to all audiences.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
It is a story of one woman’s struggle to rebuild her life, but its themes are universal. For the people of the Langtang valley, the mountains are gods – so what did they do to deserve such devastation. It also shows the universality of the small things in life, we laugh at many of the same things wherever we live, whatever our circumstances. And DIY is frustrating to everybody.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
As noted above the film was not originally going to be ‘an earthquake film’ but events took over. However we wanted to leave it a while so we were not voyeurs on people’s tragedy, and also to allow people time to come to terms with the new landscape. We asked Gyalmu to guide us through the valley, tell us the story of the earthquake, introduce us to her family and show us her home. Gyalmu is charismatic and a great ‘voice’ for the people of the Langtang, so we trusted her to give us a compelling story. Naturally we edited it to key sequences, but otherwise we hope we let the material ‘speak’ without too much intervention.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
It seems to have been well received; it’s played at around 15 festivals worldwide, and won an award in Kathmandu. The core of the film touches everybody, and the landscape is dramatic. Gyalmu’s humour also translates very well, Nepali audiences really laugh at it, but we’ve found even western audiences find many of the same things funny (though not everybody feels comfortable laughing in what is a tragic story). A number of people have come to us after the showings saying they want to visit the region – and the people there need trekkers to come and stay.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
Not really, the feedback has shown that we all value the same things, and tragedy can really connect people.
However we loved this comment from an audience member at the Banff Festival: I particularly appreciated that one of the filmmakers is female, Nepali and that the story focused almost exclusively on women. I felt we heard voices we rarely (if ever) hear on film and were privileged to see inside families and a community. I think it’s beautiful.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
We’d like to make the film as visible and widely distributed as possible, and we are also considering a follow-up film (either as a second film, or to extend the first into an hour or short feature). The community is rebuilding and redefining itself rapidly, and there are many stories to tell, and more great characters (though it would be hard to top Nima Gyalmu).
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
We’d love to have the film distributed more widely, it's been to festivals, and has had some on-line exposure, but the more people who understand what these people are going through, the better. We’d also be delighted to have a producer help us develop the project into a feature (following further visits).
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
On a practical level the community could do with trekkers returning (up to a point, I guess). The travel industry provides much of their income, and while there is a limit to sustainable tourism in any environment the Langtang is in pretty urgent need of tourist income. Spending a night or two in the small lodges, and paying a few pennies for a tea really helps. On a more global level it can never hurt to have something on an insight into the lives of others, particularly those in extremis.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Have the mountain gods deserted the people of Langtang? Or, ‘how can we continue to live in a place like this’?
What other projects are the key creative developing or working on now?
Asmita : At the moment I am developing a feature documentary on double amputee soldier on his quest to climb Mt. Everest. And also Gavin and I are talking about making a follow up to Gyalmu’s House.
Interview: January 2018
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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTIAQ+, scifi, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
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Gyalmu’s House
In 2015 an earthquake of terrible power devastated the Langtang Valley in Nepal, taking hundreds of lives from the small community. A year later Nima Gyalmu, a woman of extraordinary strength, dignity and humour. rebuilds her house while trying to come to terms with her new world.
Length: 19 minutes (a 14 minute version also exists)
Directors: Asmita Shrish & Gavin Carver
Producer: Asmita Shrish & Gavin Carver
About the writer, director and producer:
Gavin Carver spent 20 years as a lecturer in performance studies before turning to film, specialising in stories of landscape and culture. His previous film Andante, followed a cellist as she hiked to a summit in Oregon to play Bach.
Asmita Shrish: Asmita is a Nepali filmmaker working in fiction and documentary with keen interest in exploring world as she sees it. Her previous films have been selected in Locarno, Sao Paulo, Busan, BANFF, Kendal, Human Rights Watch and many more.
Key cast: Nima Gyalmu Lama
Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): producers (for extended version) buyers / distributors for this.
Social media handles:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gyalmushouse/
Website: https://gyalmushouse.wordpress.com/
Funders: Partial sponsor : Himalayan Ski Trek Ltd.
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? The short version is available on-line here: https://aeon.co/videos/after-a-landslide-destroys-her-village-a-woman-rebuilds-her-life-in-a-changed-landscape