A Million Threads

By Thu Thu Shein

Myanmar | In Burmese with English subtitles | 2006 | 15 min 20 sec | PG

Every November, on the night of a full moon, thirty women gather at Shwe Phone Pwint Pagoda in the Pazundaung district of Yangon. There, they take part in a competition known as Matho Thingan, where they are tasked to weave the finest robes for the temple’s Buddha images. Additionally, all robes must be finished by dawn.

Cheered on by crowds and an orchestra of pulsating drums and high-pitched oboes, the teams of dedicated competitors work their handlooms frenziedly back and forth. Through artistic labour, they celebrate Buddha’s foster mother Gautami—who is said to have woven her son a robe in a single day—and remember their spiritual origins.

A Million Threads premiered at Visions du Réel (2008).