Samsara: Death and Rebirth in Cambodia is a 1989 short documentary film about the people of Cambodia rebuilding after being ruled by Pol Pot and being sent to Killing Fields. The film was directed and produced by Ellen Bruno for her Stanford University master's thesis. In 2012, the National Film Registry selected the film for preservation.Synopsis
Samsara documents how the Cambodian people have suffered and recovered since Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge took over the country and since the subsequent invasion by Vietnam. The film uses "prophecies, Buddhist teachings, folklore, and dreams to describe Cambodians' worldviews". As part of documenting the Cambodians' suffering, the film covers several women's experiences.