Mountain Man

Documentary Short | Bhutanese with English Subtitles | Bhutan | Arun Bhattarai

Phuntsho Tshering, Bhutan’s only glaciologist, climbs sacred mountains annually to measure melting glaciers. His 11-year-old daughter, Yangchen, sees him disappear for months, fearing he disturbs the ‘snow lion’s’ home. Despite local warnings, Phuntsho continues his vital work to document climate change and protect the snow lion’s vanishing habitat, sharing his journey with Yangchen through phone videos.

---

About the Filmmaker

 Arun Bhattarai’s most recent feature documentary, Agent of Happiness premiered in the world cinema documentary competition at Sundance Film Festival-2024. His short film, Mountain Man won the grand jury prize for short films at the Oscar qualifying Doc NYC 2023. His first feature-length documentary, The Next Guardian premiered at IDFA - 2017.Since then, it has been screened at festivals, had theatrical releases and broadcasted around the world. His films have been supported by The Sundance Film Institute, Catapult Film Fund and IDFA Bertha Fund among others. Before becoming an independent filmmaker, he worked as a TV director at the Bhutan Broadcasting Service (BBS) for more than 5 years.