Download MP3 Podcast | Open Player in New Window

From the producers of Leviathan, comes a stunning new journey, an exhilarating documentary that takes place entirely in the sky. High above Nepal’s lush, mountainous landscape, a cable car carries pilgrims, villagers and the occasional American tourist to an ancient Hindu temple. For centuries, devoted followers had to undertake an arduous multi-day trek to reach the shrine of the wish-fulfilling goddess Manakamana. Today, the trip takes just under 10 minutes. Filmed entirely inside these cable cars as they glide over fog-enshrouded peaks and remote villages, Manakamana captures the conversations of its passengers – personal exchanges, anecdotes, shared observations on the landscape below – and emerges with a rich, vibrant view of Nepal, a land of ancient traditions and rituals on the brink of a technologically-powered future. Co-Directors Stephenie Spray and Pacho Velez join us to talk about how this gorgeous film veers between profane and sacred, absurd and solemn, intimated and removed.

For news and updates on Manakamana go to: manakamanafilm.com

“’Manakamana’ is a haunting experience, one that requires patience (and then some) but that offers spiritual, philosophical, and aesthetic rewards beyond the immediate power of words to describe.” – Ty Burr, Boston Globe

“By focusing on such a narrow slice of Nepali life, Ms. Spray and Mr. Velez have ceded any totalizing claim on the truth and instead settled for a perfect incompleteness.” – Manohlo Dargis, New York Times

“The directors, Pacho Velez (who did the camera work) and Stephanie Spray (who recorded the sound), condense world history into the confined space of a glassed-in bubble.” – Richard Brody, New Yorker

“I’ve never seen anything like it.” – Calum Marsh, Village Voice