Burma VJ

Danish producer Lise Lense-Møller passed on this great news asking if it could be interesting for our readers. Absolutely! Below quotes from emails from yesterday from Joshua to the producer, her team and the director Anders Østergaard:

“Dear All, I am writing this to share one of the most wonderful news for us. Myanmar government released 651 political prisoners and “all our VJs have been included in this amnesty.” Everybody who took part in making of Burma VJ are freed now and in good health and spirit. I believe you deserve to share our joy. 

I am now seriously thinking whether it is a good time to go back and start making more documentaries about Burma. I will write more later about it. This mail is just to thank you for all your efforts in making of Burma VJ, which played a significant role in changing the situation in Burma.”

… and further on in another mail:

“I called to four of the VJs today and they say thanks to you all. They said they heard a lot about the success of Burma VJ since they were in prison. One of them is called “Oscar” by his jailmates because of nomination news (for an Academy Award, ed.). Ko Maung joked that “One thing that upsets him is that we didn’t hire a handsome guy such as Brat Pitt to play his role.” We had Big LOL. :). But he said he was so pleased to know that someone could use the footage he has sacrificed for in a very effective way. This time, he is serious and no joking. 🙂 

He will support Aung San Suu Kyi’s works whenever he can. Someone is going to share Burma VJ DVDs to all of them and they will have chance to see a documentary about them in a few days time.  They all are really happy now.”

www.magichourfilms.dk

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Tue Steen Müller
Tue Steen Müller

Müller, Tue Steen
Documentary Consultant and Critic, DENMARK

Worked with documentary films for more than 20 years at the Danish Film Board, as press officer, festival representative and film consultant/commissioner. Co-founder of Balticum Film and TV Festival, Filmkontakt Nord, Documentary of the EU and EDN (European Documentary Network).
Awards: 2004 the Danish Roos Prize for his contribution to the Danish and European documentary culture. 2006 an award for promoting Portuguese documentaries. 2014 he received the EDN Award “for an outstanding contribution to the development of the European documentary culture”. 2016 The Cross of the Knight of the Order for Merits to Lithuania. 2019 a Big Stamp at the 15th edition of ZagrebDox. 2021 receipt of the highest state decoration, Order of the Three Stars, Fourth Class, for the significant contribution to the development and promotion of Latvian documentary cinema outside Latvia. In 2022 he received an honorary award at DocsBarcelona’s 25th edition having served as organizer and programmer since the start of the festival.
From 1996 until 2005 he was the first director of EDN (European Documentary Network). From 2006 a freelance consultant and teacher in workshops like Ex Oriente, DocsBarcelona, Archidoc, Documentary Campus, Storydoc, Baltic Sea Forum, Black Sea DocStories, Caucadoc, CinéDOC Tbilisi, Docudays Kiev, Dealing With the Past Sarajevo FF as well as programme consultant for the festivals Magnificent7 in Belgrade, DOCSBarcelona, Verzio Budapest, Message2Man in St. Petersburg and DOKLeipzig. Teaches at the Zelig Documentary School in Bolzano Italy.

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