Bitchin Bajas, Olivia Wyatt

Sublime Frequencies filmmaker Olivia Wyatt & Bitchin Bajas present a lush A/V study on the nomadic Moken people of coastal Thailand and Myanmar on DVD, accompanied by the soundtrack on vinyl.

Quite literally an anthropologist’s wet dream, The Moken are a sea-faring community and one of the smallest ethnic minority groups in Asia, traditionally spending eight months out of the year in thatch-roofed wooden boats, and with a lifestyle and belief system that completely revolves around water.

Sailing a Sinking Sea traces their lives and practice both above and below the surface, rendering a dreamlike sequence of tropical fish, shimmering turquoise seas, and these beautiful mermaid/men people, who still live stilt-born sea shanties.

The oneiric quality of the film is subtly accentuated by Bitchin Bajas’ soundtrack of auto-harps, synth, bells and flutes, perfectly capturing the nature of ‘70s nature programmes and their library synth scores, coupled with a fluid timelessness that moves in synch with the imagery, and follows on from their Epic Jammers And Fortunate Little Ditties LP with Bonnie “Prince” Billy - who executive produced this project as Will Oldham.