Chau, Beyond the Lines

Filmmaker Courtney Marsh's extraordinary documentary—Oscar-nominated for Best Documentary Short—begins in a grim setting: a facility in Ho Chi Minh City for kids who are living with severe birth defects and disabilities directly tied to Agent Orange, a notorious chemical defoliant that the U.S. sprayed on Vietnamese forests for a decade. Up to 4.8 million people in Vietnam have been affected by their parents' exposure to the poison via rivers and other natural sources. Among the boys at the “Agent Orange School” is Chau, a teen with misshapen arms and legs whose dream to become an artist runs afoul of the institution's staff. Chau is threatened with dismissal if he doesn't focus on acquiring job skills, but before he can be expelled, Chau decides to move back home, where he faces a lonely existence and a complicated physical environment. However, just when things are looking pretty bleak (enough so that Chau admits to contemplating suicide), his determination and raw talent as a painter earn him a deserved break—and possible future. An inspiring portrait, this is highly recommended. Editor's Choice. Aud: C, P. (T. Keogh)