When I was 13, my father got arrested as a political activist.
I could not find a day job and I ended up working at a
beer station. This is where I witnessed underaged girls
being destroyed. Now, Myanmar is back under a military
dictatorship again. We are living again in the depressive
country where many women become sex workers.
The Beer Girl in Yangon serves as a semi-autobiographical
story of my life. Lily’s character is a combination of my sister
and myself. The two of us would joke about how we were
born at the wrong time, the wrong place, and the wrong
gender. Portraying the menstruation in the film is not only
talking about a girl’s trauma, but it also talks about the
country’s situation. People in Myanmar are bleeding every
day, the repeating history of the military coup transforms into
a bloody country. I intend to make a film that will give a voice
to my sister, and other girls. This film is for all of us who grew
up in the shadow of trauma.