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Manakamana is an ethnographic film by Stephanie Spray and Pacho Velez, set around the Manakamana temple in Nepal, where pilgrims journey to seek blessings from the goddess Bhagwati. Once only reachable by a steep trek, most now take a 2.8 km cable car ride — each ride forming a single, uncut shot in the film. Shot on Super 16mm, the film captures a cross-section of Nepali society with quiet intimacy. Produced by Harvard’s Sensory Ethnography Lab, it reflects on tradition, change, and the shared human search for meaning.
Stephanie Spray is a filmmaker and anthropologist at Harvard’s Sensory Ethnography Lab, known for her work in Nepal exploring everyday life through sound and image. Her films have screened internationally. Pacho Velez is a nonfiction filmmaker from NYC whose work blends ethnography, art, and politics. He has taught at several top universities, and his latest film, They’re Here (2024), explores UFO believers in Upstate New York. Their film Manakamana won two awards at the 2013 Locarno Film Festival: the Golden Leopard (Filmmakers of the Present) and a Special Mention for Best First Feature.