Mao Bora lives and works in Phnom Penh, where he is a papaya seller. Despite his diplomas his nephew, Seng, is having trouble finding a job in the provinces. Like many others, Seng has come to try his luck in the capital. Bora proposes that Seng come along with him to help him out. In return, he shares his experience and gives advice to his nephew. This encounter has given them the chance to think about their respective career paths as they try to find solutions to their current problems.
Far from being a clichéd account of misery and misfortune, “The Minister of the Papaya” is first and foremost the story of a man full of energy and entrepreneurial drive. With his sharp sense of humor and his colorful motorbike, Bora shows that his enthusiasm and his creativity are the motivation for his optimism in daily life.
/a>2013, March 26th — A few hours after the publication, the video went viral on the social networks. Some local media and influencers, such as the Koh Santepheap daily embedded the video on their facebook page. As a result, we got more than 2,000 "likes", around 800 "shares" and 300 comments on Mao Bora's portrait. At the end of the day, the video had been viewed more than 4,000 times on our vimeo page.
2013, April 8th — Mao Bora's was invited on prime time on Cambodian's main tv channel.
2013, August 1st — Asia Life Magazine published an interview of Mao Bora. His business has grown to the point that he is now managing twelve people and he has replaced his colorful motorbike by a fancy quad.
Roeun Narith is the director of One Dollar first two episodes.
Thnoat Chroum (1995), documentary, 23 min
The Two Neighbors (2008), filmed folktale
Kiles (2010), Feature-length Cambodian fiction film
The Hermit and the Tiger (2010), filmed folktale
Roeun Narith, born in 1967, is one of the first Cambodians who turned to filmmaking after the decades of war and the trauma of the Khmer Rouge regime. In 1995, he participated in the Varan workshop, under the tutelage of the filmmaker Rithy Panh. His first documentary film, Thnoat Chroum, is a story about a young war widow with three children who live on very little and fall ill without access to health care.
In the years that followed, Narith was trained by Rithy Panh to become his assistant. At the same time, Narith worked on film shoots abroad, such as The Empire of the Tiger. In 2008 he focused on producing his own films, and worked on a project about traditional Cambodian tales interpreted by children. During this period he also directed institutional films. Narith’s participation in One dollar is a chance for him to explore social and economic inequality, a theme that initially drew him to cinema.