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Renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma and Bhutanese filmmaker Pawo Choyning Dorji are bringing their collaborative short film to the Telluride Film Festival. The 21-minute work, titled “A Song for the Snow Lion,” draws inspiration from a Himalayan folktale to explore the urgent environmental issue of retreating glaciers in the region. The film’s trailer has been released exclusively ahead of its festival premiere.
Dorji, whose previous feature “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom” became Bhutan’s first Oscar nomination contender for best international feature, initially pitched the project as a short film centered on traditional storytelling rather than Ma’s original concept for a music video. The director advocated for using a folktale from his childhood about mythical snow lions that inhabit glaciated mountains, believing this narrative approach would resonate more powerfully with audiences than scientific presentations about climate change.
The production ventured to the remote Lunana Valley in Bhutan, situated at elevations exceeding 5,500 meters and accessible only through a two-week trek. Ma performed the film’s central cello composition alongside Bhutanese folk vocalist Kelden Lhamo while experiencing significant altitude effects. During filming, a glacier unexpectedly fractured and collapsed into a nearby lake, an event the crew incorporated into the film’s conclusion, lending an unplanned authenticity to the project’s meditation on environmental transformation.
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Originally reported by Variety →
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