A Himalayan drama exploring the intersection of ancestral memory and artificial intelligence is seeking its final stretch of funding to reach a major international stage. Director Bikash Subedi’s feature film, titled Shirjara: Song of Grandmother, has wrapped principal photography and is currently presenting at the Tokyo Gap-Financing Market. The production team is aiming to raise the remaining $44,000 needed to complete the project and secure a premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in 2027.
Financing the Final Stretch
The film operates on a total budget of $296,000. According to producer Subash Bhusal of Kingdom Network Pvt. Ltd., the production has already secured and spent 85 percent of the required funds. The current effort at the Tokyo market, which runs as part of TIFFCOM attached to the Tokyo International Film Festival, is focused on closing the 15 percent gap.
The remaining capital will cover digital intermediate color grading, picture finishing, the creation of a master Digital Cinema Package (DCP), and a custom six-minute sequence involving artificial intelligence and visual effects. Subedi describes this specific visual style as “AnI Cinema,” or Ancestral Intelligence, a term he uses to define the film’s unique approach to blending technology with traditional storytelling.
Bhusal stated that the goal is to bring Japanese partners on board as co-producers and to handle post-production work in Japan. The team is also looking to sign a sales company to manage international rights and find distributors across Asia.
High Altitude Production and Ancestral Themes
Principal photography took place at an altitude of approximately 4,000 meters in Dhorpatan, Nepal. The crew filmed on the Arri Alexa 35 camera system. Bhusal noted that the extreme elevation created significant logistical challenges for the cast and crew. Despite these hurdles, he emphasized that the team believed the story justified the difficult conditions.
The resulting rough cut runs for 80 minutes. The narrative moves between the traditional culture of the high Himalayas and a modern world increasingly shaped by technology. The central premise asks what creators of learning machines might gain from the knowledge of their ancestors, specifically knowledge that exists outside of written archives and digital databases.
Subedi drew inspiration from his own childhood experiences. He recalled sitting beside an old hearth in the high Himalayas, listening to stories from his grandmother, who was around 90 years old at the time. Those memories prompted him to question why society invests so heavily in teaching machines to understand humans, while often neglecting to understand themselves.
“For me, this is a personal journey from the motherboard back to the marrow,” Subedi said. He clarified that his interest lies not in opposing technology, but in examining what happens when technology enters a deeper conversation with human history.
Future Projects and International Distribution
The production aims to launch the film at Cannes in 2027. Bhusal described the support for the project as an opportunity to back a filmmaker with a distinct perspective and to introduce a deeply rooted Nepali story to a wider international audience.
Subedi is already developing the next installment in his AnI Cinema movement. This upcoming project will focus on ancient trans-Himalayan trade routes and the concept of memory across time. Kingdom Network also has further projects from Asia in development, each grounded in specific local cultures.
Source: Variety
