Monday, May 11, 2015

Chloé Zhao's 'Songs My Brothers Taught Me' Trailer & Poster

I named Chloé Zhao's directorial debut film, Songs My Brothers Taught Me one of the best films I saw at this year's Sundance Film Festival. Set on the Great Plains and the Badlands of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, the film explores the bond between a brother and his younger sister as they navigate through their separate paths as they rediscover the meaning of home.  It was Zhao's sensual and delicate filmmaking style and approach to this beautiful story that truly captivated and moved me on an emotional and spiritual level beyond what I had ever expected. Through the eyes of the film's two youthful leads played by John Reddy and Jashaun St. John, we get a sneak peek into the usually reserved and rarely seen world of Native American people and culture with sweeping beauty and sincerity. The trailer is being released by Pharrell Williams and Mimi Waldês' company i am OTHER, so check it out below!

Songs My Brothers Taught Me is selected to screen in the prestigious 47th annual Directors' Fortnight program at the Cannes Film Festival this year. As one of the three female filmmakers in the program, Zhao is a visionary and tour-de-force filmmaker to be reckoned with. You can already tell from the trailer and poster that the film will be a poetic contemplation on a culture seldom seen on screen. The film provides a portraiture of the Native Americans living on this Indian reservation but the story goes beyond that, to tell an universal and potent story about one's identity and home. It was such a unique and breathtaking experience going into a film without knowing and expecting anything, only to come out questioning and reflecting on my whole existence and journey as a human being. I mean, THAT is powerful. I hope it gets U.S. Distribution soon because I need everyone and their mama's to see it ASAP!