Journey to Surrender: Captain Panic

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Captain Panic

Angkor Wat is located close to the modern town of Siem Reap.

The Ruins of Angkor are a short motorcycle ride away from the bustling town of Siem Reap

Siem Reap is situated on the shores of the Tonle Sap Lake. http://www.tripadvisor.com.mx/Attraction_Review-g297390-d324854-Reviews-Tonle_Sap_Lake-Siem_Reap_Siem_Reap_Province.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/10/science/of-fish-monsoons-and-the-future.html?_r=0

http://www.worldlakes.org/lakedetails.asp?lakeid=8672

Tonle Sap Lake is the largest lake in Indochina. Every year, the lake yields about 300,000 tons of fish, making it one of the world’s most productive freshwater ecosystems. That and the floods that pulse through it in monsoon season, swelling it to as much as five times its dry-season size, have earned the lake the nickname “Cambodia’s beating heart.”But the Tonle Sap is in trouble — from overfishing to feed a fast-growing population, from the cutting of mangrove forests that shelter young fish, from hydro-electric dams upstream, and from the dry seasons that are expected to grow hotter and longer with global warming.

Our documentary on the Vishnu temples of Cambodia documents the path of 19th Century French discoverer Henri Mouhout, one of the first Europeans to discover the ruins at Angkor Wat.

He approached the ruins from the Tonle Sap Lake, so we decided to revisit his route and see how it has changed in the 154 years since his discovery.

'A splendid night; the moon shines with extraordinary brilliancy, silvering the surface of this lovely river, bordered by high mountains, looking like a grand and gloomy rampart. The chirp of the cricket alone breaks the stillness.'

- Henri Mouhot wrote in his diary on the 15th of July 1861 while sitting at the base of a tree in dense jungle on the banks of the Tonle Sap river

Tonle Sap Lake

We left early in the morning. The film crew ran behind us in another boat.

We found the Tonle Sap to be an uproarious jumble of houseboats and traffic. Cigarette boats with huge V8 engines flashed along the water beside us. Snake girls pulled up to our boat and danced, offering Coca Cola, mangos, beer, cigarettes, and fresh-cooked sticky rice in bamboo.

Naga Girl selling Coca cola and asking for tips.

Soon we reached the forest of sunken trees. When the Mekong floods, it backs up into the Tonle Sap lake, flooding it with fish and drowning the trees.

We sailed on into the depths of the Tonle Sap Lake. There we reached the floating villages of Vietnamese fishermen. The Tonle Sap used to be filled with many fish that Henri Mouhot reported seeing them crushed under the boat. Now our captain told us it's mostly catfish. The lake was about 10 meters deep at its deepest point.

Floating houses on Tonle Sap Lake

Vietnamese floating villages

Vietnamese shopping center

To Market

Hardware store on the lake

Close to floating restaurant

Tourist Boat

Taking a break at the floating restaurant

We spent most of the morning shooting scenes on the lake. We were shooting out of sequence. It was only our second day in Cambodia, we were waiting for the rest of the film crew, but we figured the lake would make a good ending. So we worked for a few hours. It was time for a break and our boat captain took us to a floating restaurant.

I had been relaxing a few minutes when they called me back into action. The idea was to do something live for immediate internet release. Our assistant director had found something interesting.

Assistant Director, Indulekha DD

There were angry crocodiles aboard the floating restaurant. The opportunity was too good to pass up. And so was created an instant internet sensation and comedy classic: Crocodile Harinam.

Angry Crocodiles.

Of course this was just for laughs. We had been working hard all morning and were blowing off some steam. I hope the documentary is a bit more serious. But you can see we have a good chemistry on-screen.