Sing Me a Song

Invited

Tucked away in in the serene and foggy mountains of Bhutan lies the rural village of Laya, the last place in the country to receive connection to the internet and television. The young monks at the monastery there favor their smartphones over daily chants or prayers, and playing arcade games over studying. For Peyangki, his initial dream of monkhood withers in the presence of online love songs and the frequent WeChat exchanges he shares with a woman in the city of Thimphu. Fettered to a certain fate if he remains in Laya, Peyangki uses earnings from selling medicinal mushrooms to embark across the country to meet Ugyen, his internet companion, who makes her living as a singer. Even when physically united, they find it challenging to break from the comfort of their handheld devices. In a stark portrayal of technology infiltrating tradition, Sing Me a Song balances the greater ramifications of these new influences with tender portraits of personal growth.  KR

Director

Thomas Balmès

Producer

Thomas Balmès

Executive Producers

Jeff Skoll, Diane Weyermann

Editors

Alex Cardon, Ronan Sinquin

Cinematographer

Thomas Balmès

Release Year

2019

Festival Year

2020

Country

France, Germany, Switzerland

Run Time

99 minutes

Subtitled

No