Funan

Winner of Best Feature Film at the 2018 Annecy International Animated Film Festival, and featuring the voices of Bérénice Bejo and Louis Garrel, this meticulous, hand-drawn recreation of Cambodian life under the Khmer Rouge isn’t easily forgotten.

On 17 April 1975, Pol Pot’s army captured Phnom Penh. Along with millions of the city’s residents, young couple Chuo and Khuon are forced to make the lengthy trek to rural work camps. When their four-year-old son is taken from them along the way, their story becomes one of not just of endurance, but of hope – that they’ll survive years of punishing labour, widespread starvation and brutal violence to see their child again.

Inspired by stories his own family’s experiences during the horrific Khmer Rouge regime, first-time director Denis Do (a layout artist on Long Way North, MIFF 2016) brings Cambodia’s difficult history to the screen, using stunning animation to delve into heartbreaking and harrowing events.

“A compellingly dark and accurate look at a major 20th century atrocity.” – The Hollywood Reporter