Filipino Reviews Projects Reviews The Khavn Project (46/183)

Short Film Review: Pushcart Family (Pamilyang Kariton) (2009) by Khavn

In his short film of almost four minutes, gives an insight into the life of a street vendor family. As the title already says “”, the family owns a pushcart from which they run their business.

Unobtrusive and without pathos, the film follows a young man selling fresh mangoes from two trays. He peels and cuts them open. When a customer comes, he first puts the mango in a bag and then a spoon of a brown sauce in another bag. These few steps only interrupt his calling, which sounds like a mantra, for a very short time.

Like a carpet of sound, his words lay over the film. As a supplement, Khavn records the street noises resulting from traffic and people passing by and draws the viewer directly into the action. For this reason, it is not possible to look away. There is no distance to the characters.

pushcart family

The camera is very close to the faces, so close that one almost believes he watches the drops of sweat. At an other moment, the picture rests with a certain distance on the three people on the cart. It suggests a feeling of serenity and confidence, which makes one forget how poor the circumstances shown are. A newborn baby lies shrivelled up in the arms of its mother. She holds it lovingly and talks to her husband. A happy family, it seems, at least for the moment.

Khavn gives the family a moment of dignity with his film. They exist and are not only a side effect of the street life.

pushcart familiy

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

>