BANANA PANCAKES AND THE CHILDREN OF STICKY RICE

For centuries, the economic and social fabric of life in this small, remote village in northern Laos has remained essentially the same. But that changes when the widely-read Lonely Planet guidebooks identify it as a place where one can experience a traditional way of life; quickly making it a popular destination for Western backpackers.

Banana Pancakes and the Children of Sticky Rice is an illuminating and incisive examination of globalization; eschewing a too-easy, black-and-white read of the subject, and opting instead for a nuanced and complex assessment.

For some residents, the backpackers are unwelcome guests. But for many, they represent new economic opportunities, a chance to partake in what the West has to offer. The backpackers too are conscious of their role; that they might be disrupting and changing the very lifestyle they have come here to experience.

Beautifully photographed, this brilliant documentary captures this schism, this tug-and-pull of civilization, and presents a microcosm of our changing world; for centuries, the children of this village ate bowls of sticky rice for breakfast, but these days, more are preferring the sweetness of banana pancakes.

* Official Selection, Margaret Mead Film Festival
* Official Selection, Rotterdam Film Festival
* Official Selection, Chicago Film Festival

"Banana Pancakes is something remarkable." - Film Comment

"Highly recommended." - Educational Media Reviews Online

"A jewel of a film." - Front Row

"Filmmaker Daan Veldhuizen's deceptively appealing encounter with villagers in a small Laotian town as they begin to welcome Western tourists is far more perceptive and sly than it first seems." - Indiewire