ABOVE AND BELOW THE GROUND

Above and Below the Ground depicts the Indigenous women activists and punk rock pastors leading Myanmar's first country-wide environmental movement. When the Myanmar army and a Chinese corporate giant force Indigenous Kachin people off their ancestral land to build the massive Myitsone Dam, grandmother Lu Ra stands her ground. We see her and fellow activist Ja Hkawn struggle to save the sacred confluence and build a movement, mentoring young female law student Hkawn Mai. A Kachin punk rock band made of pastors, BLAST, also takes action, transforming their love songs into protest anthems. Our film follows these individuals through their journey of activism, from their underground beginnings during Myanmar's military junta rule, to supposed "democratic" reforms and a sudden military coup. During such periods of fledgling democracy and dictatorship-in Myanmar and globally-our film asks how ordinary people can use the power of music, community organizing and women's leadership to challenge authoritarianism. 

2026  Asian Studies  Economics  Environmental Studies  Media Studies  Peace & Conflict  Directed by Women  Cultural Studies  Southeast Asian Studies  Women's Studies 

Nominee - Werbner Award for Visual Ethnography, Royal Anthropological Institute Film Festival

Nominee - Margaret Mead Filmmaker Award, Margaret Mead Film Festival

Nominee - Excellence in Visual Anthropology, Ethnocineca International Documentary Film Festival

Nominee - Best Documentary Feature, Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival

Nominee - Best Documentary Feature, BlackStar Film Festival

"A lyrical and poignant documentary about the resilience and struggles of Myanmar's indigenous communities for climate justice, protecting a sacred river from so-called 'progress and development' dam-building projects. Through precise and beautifully crafted cinematography, the presence of the river, of nature itself, emerges as a profound counterpoint to the violence of the everyday lives of displaced communities. Essential viewing in feminist, environmental, indigenous studies, development, and postcolonial studies classrooms." 

- Chandra Talpade Mohanty Distinguished Professor and Chair, Women?s and Gender Studies, Dean?s Professor of the Humanities, Syracuse University