Burma VJ

2008 · Anders Østergaard

At a glance

Burma VJ is an 84-minute documentary directed by Anders Østergaard. Its full title is Burma VJ: Reporting from a Closed Country, and it follows the Saffron Revolution against Burma’s military regime. The film uses footage made by video journalists, including material recorded with handheld cameras and brought out of the country physically or through the Internet. Some sequences were reconstructed, a choice that drew controversy. The documentary is listed as a production involving Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and the United Kingdom, with dialogue in Burmese and English. Lise Lense-Møller is its producer. The film received the Bodil Award for Best Documentary and the Robert Award for Best Documentary Feature. These details make it a documentary about reporting and events during political unrest, with both original and reconstructed material.

Who it is for

It may suit viewers interested in the Saffron Revolution, video journalism, or documentaries about reporting under a military regime. The Burmese- and English-language film runs 84 minutes.

What is good

Follows the Saffron Revolution
Includes video-journalist footage
Won two listed documentary awards
Runtime is 84 minutes

What to know first

Some scenes were reconstructed
Reconstruction prompted controversy

Verdict

Burma VJ combines video-journalist material with reconstructed sequences to depict the Saffron Revolution. Viewers should know that the reconstructed portions were controversial.

Details

Year: 2008wikidata.org · 3 Oct 2026
Runtime: 84 minwikidata.org · 3 Oct 2026
Director: Anders Østergaardwikidata.org · 3 Oct 2026
Country: Norway, Sweden, Denmark, United Kingdomwikidata.org · 3 Oct 2026
IMDb: tt1333634wikidata.org · 3 Oct 2026

Listed on DocumentaryTube

Documentaries of the 2000s in 20264066 listed
Documentaries Directed by Anders Østergaard5 listed

Sources

wikidata.org/wiki/Q1016657· checked 3 Oct 2026
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burma_VJ· checked 2 Oct 2026