LETTERS FROM AKYAB

A film by Eugènia Balcells
2020
Duration: 1:12:30    video HD, color

LETTERS FROM AKYAB is a documentary film from artist Eugènia Balcells, an inner journey, a search of the origins, a vindication of the feminine lineage and a fascinating discovery.

This film honors Eugènia’s Burmese ancestors who were forced to hide their origin in order to continue their lives in Europe where they were sent to study.

Recognizing and integrating this valuable vital legacy gives a special sense and coherence to the whole work of the artist.

The film originates from some letters found in an old travel bag, after the death of her grandmother Luisa, who had hidden them all her life. In the letters the date and the place of origin were clear, Akyab, Burma.

The spaces where the name of the mother was supposed to appear were blank; the words had been carefully erased to keep the secret of their origin.

Departing from a real fact, a personal search, the film shows us the relationship between orient and occident, the situation of the women and the racial and social prejudices; and the great richness and simple humanity of such very little known traditions.

The film becomes a multiple mosaic of various reading levels, cultural patrimony of universal interest.

Filmed, written, edited and narrated by Eugènia Balcells  
Luis Felipe Ruiz / editing
Clara Balcells / assistant in editing and sound
Fletcher Ventura / sound post production
Isabel Mestres / orientation in the interpretation of the text

Poems by Rabindranath Tagore and Nguyen Phan Que Mai