As a result of armed conflict, political repression and economic precarity, Myanmar migrants have spread throughout and beyond the region of Southeast Asia. While a minority come under formal refugee protection, the majority have to find their way around temporary stays and illicit, often underpaid work. This session will screen three short films produced on and with Myanmar migrants by an experienced Shan film maker. The first two films were co-produced in 2025 with ten young Shan migrants in Thailand in collaboration with the Ethnographic Impact for Social Justice projects hosted at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. The third film was produced by Ngao Tong Films and depicts the lives of two migrants from Myanmar who were forced to rebuild their lives in Timor-Leste.

1. Letter to a Friend tells the story of Shan migrants in Thailand fleeing conflict, repression, and forced military recruitment in neighbouring Myanmar. Narrating his story to a friend who stayed behind, the protagonist describes the dangerous journey from his home country, his struggles to secure a livelihood without legal rights, and his concern for friends who remain back home. Against the background of deteriorating human rights in Myanmar, and told in their own words, Letter to a Friend depicts the deep humanity and resourcefulness of this group of unrecognized refugees in an often forgotten part of the world.
2. The Alien: Back in 2023, Nang Luen Khur, a migrant from Shan State, Myanmar, was arrested in Chiang Mai due to her illegal status in Thailand. During her time in prison she got harassed by a prison guard and she has lived with that pain until now. After 28 days in prison, the Thai authorities deported her back to Myanmar. Nang Luen Khur was determined never to return to Thailand…
3. From Burma to Timor Leste: In 2006 two Burmese migrant workers on the Thai-Burma border thought they had found good paid work when they were offered an opportunity on a Thai fishing boat. Little did they realize they had become part of human trafficking. Enduring incredibly harsh conditions, unable to leave the boat or return home they finally escaped by swimming to Timor-Leste. In this documentary they tell their amazing story of exploitation and hardship and how they finally found sanctuary.