Monkey Dance

I work to capture an authentic voice in my films. In Monkey Dance, I wanted to portray what it feels like to be a teen and how tough it can be to make the right choices. I shot most of the film myself as a one-person crew: riding along in speedy cars, waiting around in supermarket parking lots after hours, eating delicious homemade Cambodian food with the families. I also gave my three subjects small video cameras to record their own lives.

Over the four years of filming, my relationship with the kids changed. I became a parent myself and gradually became more interested in interviewing their parents. I was just blown away by their stories. They had survived the Khmer Rouge genocide, suffering through torture and murder and starvation. They had lost most of their relatives and had run through the jungles, avoided landmines, and sat festering in refugee camps for years. Then finally the U.S. accepted them and they came to this place where they had nothing. The parents told me that America wasn’t where they wanted to be, but that they came here to give a better life to their children. I realized that this was what was at stake for Linda, Sam, and Sochenda.

The Angkor Dance Troupe plays a key role in helping these kids find their way and make good on their parents’ dreams. It connects them to their family’s culture and helps them become more successful Americans, through gaining confidence and recognition as performers.

Fifteen years after making Monkey Dance, I checked in with Linda, Samnang, and Sochenda and made the short follow-up Dance Family. Now in their early 30s, they have all returned to Lowell become leaders in their community.