29th Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival

24. 10.–2. 11. 2025
Log inČeštinaEnglish

Beautiful Angkor-Wat, Cambodia

Gaston Méliès / Cambodia, United States / 1913 / Czech Premiere / 11 min.


synopsis

Cambodia was the penultimate stop on Gaston Méliès' film journey around the world, and he made four feature films and three documentaries there. Most of them are set in the ruins of the temples of Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom. Today, no satisfactory explanation can be found for the sequence of images; there are obviously-staged shots of people riding elephants and what appears to be a fragment of an acted scene. Most of the footage is merely a descriptive contemplation of a sacred place untouched by the tourism industry.

biography

Gaston Méliès (1852-1915), the brother of the more famous Georges, was primarily his sales representative in the United States. However, he has been directing films himself since 1903. He was first celebrated by American audiences. In the years 1912-13 he traveled the world and shot documentary films with staged scenes in exotic environments.

more about film

director: Gaston Méliès

Film at festival

premiere type:Czech Premiere
festival edition:2023
section:The Méliès Brothers' Documentary Film
language:Silent
subtitles:No Subtitle

Info

director:Gaston Méliès
original title:Beautiful Angkor-Wat, Cambodia
country:Cambodia, United States
year:1913
running time:11 min.

Festival partners

Ministerstvo kultury
Fond kinematografie
Město Jihlava
Kraj Vysočina
Creative Europe Media
GEMO
Česká televize
Český rozhlas
Aktuálně.cz
Respekt
Dafilms

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