Born Warriors (2014)

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Born Warriors is a 2016 trilogy of documentary films directed and shot by Vincent Giordano. The films focus on the art of Lethwei, an ancient form of Burmese bare-knuckle/bound-fist fighting that is still practiced throughout Myanmar.

Production

Filming began in 1999 on the northern border between Thailand and Myanmar. The original footage was not intended for a documentary, but as visual support documentation for the Vanishing Flame, a cross-cultural book on the bare-knuckle fighting arts of Southeast Asia and India.

During a trip to Mandalay in 2003, Vincent suffered whiplash when his car nearly flipped as he attempted to flee a military crackdown. His camera was severely damaged and critical footage was lost.

A network of Burmese informers and spies continued to monitor the filming progress, but did not obstruct any of the shoots. Instead, many of the Burmese who participated or helped were endlessly harassed. The situation escalated in 2005, when Vincent and Associate Producer and Music Composer Camus Celli visited the compound of the late author and political activist Min Theinkha to film his Lethwei club in Hmawbi township.

An eventual book deal eventually fell through, but Giordano continued to train, document and film for over two decades. He traveled through most of Burma, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos and India during this period.

A series of screenings of rough-cut material was set up in New York and Connecticut. The screenings failed to generate any interest or further financial support, and the project was scrapped. However, the opening of Myanmar in 2011-2012 sparked renewed interest among hungry Lethwei promoters inside the country. In July 2012, Giordano released a limited-edition DVD entitled Born to Battle: Burma vs.

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