Synopsis

Hindu goddess, Sita was a devoted wife who followed her beloved husband and king into hermitage for 14 years. But when she is kidnapped by an evil king from Sri Lanka and saved, her husband doubts her faithfulness. Although she claims to her innocence, the king eventually banishes her into the woods. Meanwhile, an animator living in contemporary New York, Nina receives an e-mail from her husband in India to end the relationship. On a trip to India with her husband in 2002, director, Nina Paley encounters for the first time, the Indian epic poetry, [Ramayana] and inspired by it, she spends five years to create a beautiful musical animated film. Discovering the similarities between Sita’s tragic marriage and her own, the director incorporates this observation into her film. She presents three shadow puppets with Indian accents to narrate the stories of Sita who lived during ancient times and the modern day Nina who is the director herself. The songs that Sita sings are those from American jazz vocalist, Annette Hanshaw who was active during the 1920s. And the director cleverly combines the lyrics and the narrative with this approach. With scenes where the ancient Hindu goddess dances as she sings the Blues or the intermission scenes recalling Bollywood films, director Nina Paley’s humor and originality shines throughout the film. (Chung Woochung)

감독

• 
  • 니나 패일리
  • 1968년 미국 일리노이 출생. 오랫동안 신문에 만화를 연재해 왔으며 1998년부터 영화제용독립 애니메이션을 만들기 시작했다. 대표작으로는 논란과 인기를 동시에 얻었던 환경 단편 <황새>가 있다. 2002년 처음으로‘라마야나’를 읽게 되었고 이에 영감을 얻어 <블루스를 부르는 시타>를 연출하게 되었다. 5년에 걸쳐 완성된 이 작품은 현재 세계 각지의 영화제에서 상영되며 화제를 모으고 있다. 니나는 현재 뉴욕 맨하탄에 있는 파슨 디자인 학교에서 교수로 재직 중이다.