The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)
Directed by Ellen Kuras  Co-directed by Thavisouk Phrasavath
Documentary
2008   |   1h 35m   |   Laos, USA

Synopsis:  The time will come when the universe will shake. It will break piece by piece, country by country, religion by religion. Husband and wife will break into two. The children will escape, blowing like the wind. They will scatter to hide in the woods on islands like frightened deer hunted by evil men. The world as we know it will change…beyond recognition.  [5000-year-old Lao prophecy]

Filmed over the course of 23 years, NERAKHOON (The Betrayal) is the story of a family’s epic journey from war-torn Laos to the mean streets of New York. Thavisouk Phrasavath tells his own story of struggling as a young man to survive both the war and the hardships of immigrant life, as well as his mother’s astonishing tale of perseverance. Renowned cinematographer Ellen Kuras’s directorial debut is a remarkable collaboration with co-director Phrasavath – a poetic, deeply personal film about the hidden, human face of war’s “collateral damage.”
*in English & Laos (w/subtitles)

About the Director(s):  
A respected cinematographer, Ellen Kuras has won the Sundance Film Festival dramatic Excellence in Cinematography Award an unprecedented three times: for Tom Kalin’s Swoon in 1992, and for two of Rebecca Miller’s films, Angela in 1995 and Personal
Velocity in 2002. She has also received two Emmy Award nominations: for A Century of Women and Spike Lee’s 4 Little Girls. Other film credits include Blow, Eternal Sunshine
of the Spotless Mind, and Michel Gondry’s Be Kind Rewind, which is premiering at this year’s Festival. 
[Co-director of “The Betrayal] Thavisouk Phrasavath - Thavisouk is extremely active in the Laotian-American community and has served as the primary liaison for Laotian residents in the New York
City area, founding both gang-prevention and family crisis-intervention programs. His previous film work includes writing, directing, and editing such films as Summer School, Cuba Libre, Americanos, and Golden Venture.

Screening Times:  Neville / Th 9 PM, Fri 9:30 PM, Sat 9 PM