Lashio Ambulance

Synopsis

It’s an intense ride with this Muslim volunteer ambulance crew in Lashio in Myanmar’s northern Shan State but one in which their dedication to helping those in need – regardless of gender, ethnicity or religion – is palpable and radiates a powerful message for peace. From beginning to tragic end.

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Credits

Director: Mann Pye Phyo Aung
Camera Tin Win Naing
Sound Recordist & Additional Camera Htun Tauk Moe Thu
Editor Thae Zar Chi Khaing
Editing Mentor Melanie Sandford ASE

Technical Details

Duration: 15‘59‘‘
Format 16:9 anamorphic
System PAL
Subtitles English
2020

Copyright

Mann Pye Phyo Aung
Yangon Film School

Director's Statement

My interest in the history and culture of different ethnicities in Myanmar made me curious about this Muslim volunteer association which has been providing emergency services in Lashio since 1972. A few years ago, Lashio was the site of fierce sectarian conflict. Yet this ambulance service survived and is still going today because of donations from people of different religious beliefs in Lashio – Buddhists, Christians, Muslims and Hindus. I was curious to hear their stories – from then and now – and to find out what makes them keep going.

Director's Biography

Mann Pye Phyo Aung (born 1993) is from Lashio, the capital of northern Shan State in Myanmar. A photographer, he volunteered at a number of civil society organisations in Myanmar before joining YFS in 2018. During his studies at YFS he worked as editor and/or sound recordist on a number of his peers' documentary projects, including 30th Street Mosque and Husband and Wife. He was also co-creator of a short drama shot in Yangon with a non-professional cast, Easy Money. In 2020 his script Curve received a Special Mention from the Myanmar Script Fund, and he is also the recipient of a photography scholarship from Myanmar Deitta's Contemporary Documentary Photography Practice (CDPP) programme. Lashio Ambulance, his second-year project at YFS, earned him the Jade Award in the Goethe-Institute Myanmar's Documentary Competition. His newest film Light Matter will celebrate its World Premiere at the upcoming Taiwan International Documentary Film Festival in May 2024.