At the DVB Peacock Film Festival 2025’s award ceremony most award-winning filmmakers from Myanmar were absent for their own safety, as festival organizer Chan Thiri Soe told DVB English News they could not travel to Thailand. In their place, representatives accepted awards on behalf of the winners — including one who delivered a message from Fragment of Witness director Kha Baung whose film won the festival’s highest prize.
“[Kha Baung] never expected to win such awards, and was simply grateful that DVB had supported him in making the film in the first place. He thanked DVB for that support, which made the film possible,” said a man — who covered his face with a mask for security reasons — on the condition of anonymity while accepting The International Jury Best Choice Award on behalf of Kha Baung for his film Fragment of Witness at the award ceremony on Dec. 10 at Chiang Mai University (CMU) in Thailand.
Fragment of Witness, which also won the DVB Short Doc Contest (DSDC) Award, was one of 30 documentaries that DVB Multimedia Group helped through technical guidance and financial assistance, enabling filmmakers to share their stories. It documents firsthand accounts from survivors of the 7.7-magnitude earthquake that struck central Myanmar on March 28.
More than 1,000 people joined the three-day film festival Dec. 8-10 at CMU with around 360 people filling the hall for the awards ceremony on the last day.
“International audiences who came to this festival can really understand the real context of our country, and they will become voices for our people,” Naw Susanna Hla Hla Soe, a National League for Democracy (NLD) member of parliament ousted during the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021, told DVB before the awards ceremony.
Students, migrant workers, journalists and filmmakers from Myanmar living in Thailand, as well as foreigners from dozens of countries, attended the DVB Peacock Film Festival. “It’s not just like watching normal films. I was crying in every movie,” one attendee told DVB on the condition of anonymity.
Melody of Hope, a film by Haki, received a Special Mention in the DSDC category for its portrait of displaced children pursuing their dream of becoming musicians amid the threat of regime airstrikes.
Thirst Amidst Turmoil, a film by Eimama Mon, won the News Feature Award for its look at how conflict has deprived communities in central Myanmar of access to water.
“I couldn’t go to the ground to film this myself. Citizen journalists recorded these scenes in the middle of regime airstrikes and military advances. They are not professional filmmakers, but they did their best to reveal what was happening. I am truly grateful to them,” Eimama Mon told DVB.
None of the winning filmmakers—except Eimama Mon—were able to accept their awards in person. She now lives and works in Chiang Mai.
In the Citizen Journalist (CJ) Shorts category, The Middle Land of the Displaced by Raysan — following a family rebuilding their lives after airstrikes destroyed their village — won the top prize.
Star, by Ugly Crow, earned a Special Mention for its story of a university lecturer who joins the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) and later becomes a local journalist.
The DVB Organizer’s Choice Award was presented to The Unbroken Spirits of 1027, directed by Mai Nyi Win Maung and Mai Ba Nyan. The film documents two former political prisoners who immediately returned to anti-coup activities upon their release.
“It is very encouraging that today I see young people still working for their country,” added Naw Susanna Hla Hla Soe, who retired from Myanmar politics this year after serving as a minister in the National Unity Government (NUG), which is a group representing elected lawmakers ousted in the 2021 coup.
“Our films will have opportunities to be screened internationally through Peacock. Festivals like this ensure the realities and experiences of the Myanmar people remain part of the historical record,” said Myo Kyaw, a filmmaker who attended the festival.
This year marks the fourth edition of documentary film screenings from Myanmar organized by the DVB Multimedia Group in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and the second annual DVB Peacock Film Festival, launched last year.
“These are the records, dignity, and hopes of our people. Despite our limited budget, we are determined to ensure that voices from Myanmar are heard widely across the world,” said Chan Thiri Soe, the DVB Peacock Film Festival’s organizer.
