California Documentary Project
Seasons of Migration
Khmer Arts Academy
Los Angeles
Project Director: John Bishop
Interpreting the changing identities of Cambodian refugees in Long Beach through Cambodian classical dance
Following the 1979 collapse of the Khmer Rouge, hundreds of thousands of Cambodians fled their native land. Around 150,000 settled in the United States, with about one and three making their home in Long Beach, which now contains the largest concentration of Cambodians outside of Southeast Asia.
This project is a 60-minute documentary of a Cambodian classical dance piece on the theme of immigration and culture shock. The dance, “Seasons of Migration,” was choreographed by Long Beach-based choreographer Sophiline Cheam Shapiro, who trained at both UCLA and Cambodia’s official performing arts conservatory. “Seasons of Migration” presents mythological characters who descend to earth to live among humans, with their experiences of culture shock symbolically representing the culture shock of the choreographer and Cambodian refugees everywhere.
Project Director John Bishop, said, “’Seasons of Migration’ is notable not only as an example of how immigrants rewrite their mythology and folklore, but also because it was created by an artist with feet in both cultures. In creating ‘Seasons of Migration,’ she is taking ownership of an art form that has been in official possession of the temples, the royal court and the government for more than a thousand years. The notion of using classical dance as a vehicle to tell a personal story is radical and foreign. In this sense the project is a manifestation of the ever-changing dynamic of exchange and influence between Long Beach and Cambodia."