Tau Seru

WARNING: May contains trace of spoilers! People allergic to the discussion of any plot's elements before seeing a movie are strongly advised to take the necessary precautions for their safety and should avoid reading further.

“In the vastness of the Himalayas, a young nomad's curiosity lies beyond the horizon. ” (Festival's Program)

It's “a simple story, with practically no dialogue, that of a young nomad hoping to leave this place. Capturing endless, vertiginous landscapes Tau Seru is a physical, earthy film offering a tender portrait of a father and son in the silence of the lambs.” (Baptiste Etchegaray, on Semaine de la Critique du Festival de Cannes website)

This cute short is not Japanese, but since it was opening for one of the Japanese movies at the World Film Festival, I thought that I might as well talk about it a little.

The director is Australian and it was shot in the Indian Himalayas in a region called Ladakh, near the city of Leh.

A father and son bring their herd of sheep and goats to the “alpine” pastures of the Himalayas. One sheep is sick or too tired and refuse to go further. The father ask the son to go sell it to a nearby camp. The son take the money of the sale, hops on a bus and leaves, presumably for the city. An age-old story beautifully told, with almost no dialogues (in fact, I don't remember any!). The scenery and the photography is just gorgeous. A nice little gem.

Tau Seru ( Small Yellow Field ): Australia / India, 2013, 8 min.; Dir./Scr./Prod.: Rodd Rathjen; Phot.: Michael latham; Ed.: Marco Treglia, Mischa Baka, Rodd Rathjen; Co-Prod.: Tashi Wangail; Cast: Deskong Namgyal Nurla (boy), Tashi Wangail (father). Short Film opening for The devil's path, screened at the Montreal World Film Festival August 25th, 2013 (Cinema Quartier Latin 9, 16h20) as part of the “Focus on World Cinema” segment.
For more information you can visit the following websites:
Tau Seru © 2013 Rodd Rathjen.

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