Ancient Culture, Disability Focus of Mongolian Films

Wild horses, hilly landscapes and nomadic people are some of the images that characterize Mongolia, a sparsely populated country with more than 14 billion cattle. But the country is also characterized by a range of social ills that at least one woman is seeking to address through film.

Speaking at a brown-bag lunch last week Mongolian filmmaker Munkzhul Chuluunbat, a visiting artist-in-residence at Duke's Center for Documentary Studies (CDS), shared a short documentary and film expressing her passion and advocacy for Mongolia.

Her visit to America is part of the Cultural Exchange Council ArtsLink Program, which offers U.S. audiences a chance to engage with international artists and exchange ideas. CDS is one of 19 programs in the United States that received a grant from the CEC ArtsLink Program, which helped facilitate Chuluunbat's visit.

"I don't know how many people at Duke spend time thinking about Mongolia, so I think it's exciting to have someone come from a place that's unknown to so many of us, and expose us to a significant and ancient culture," said Courtney Reid-Eaton, the exhibitions director for the Center for Documentary Studies and an organizer of the event.

In the film "Wonders of Mongolian Books," Chuluunbat explored the history of Mongolia's sacred texts and their importance to a country with a reverence for ancient culture.

"Every Step is a Hurdle," a short, 6-minute feature, follows a young disabled woman who strives to overcome the lack of disability access in her country with a sense of optimism.

"We are facing these true problems. It's a big part of Mongolia. We should care about them. And we are trying to make society understand and to make a change," Chuluunbat said.

The event was sponsored by the Center for Documentary Studies.