PARK CITY, UTAH - JANUARY 19: (L-R) Suraj Bhattarai, Arun Bhattarai, Dorottya Zurb and M t Artur Vincze attend the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Agent of Happiness premiere. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock)
By Patty Consolazio
Films can affect viewers in great and enduring ways. But we don't often get the chance to hear how they can affect the very people who create them.
Co-directors Arun Bhattarai and Dorottya Zurb spoke in a Q&A after the premiere screening of Agent of Happiness on January 19 at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.
Documentary filmmaking is always a very self-reflective process, and I think while we were shooting the film, we were always questioning ourselves, what makes us happy, says Zurb . I think for me, visiting and living and creating in Bhutan in the last 10 years, what I learned from the people and our protagonists is mostly acceptance to try and let things go, not always striving for more, and appreciate the moment. Making this film was a lot of time a reminder of our values, which we tend to forget in this rushing world.
Bhutan lies deep in the center of Asia between India and China, known for being a verdant, mountainous region of the world. As a society, the Bhutanese hold the belief that happiness is a characteristic key to the well-being of the nation. In fact, much like with the U.S. Census, Bhutan's government sends hired agents to travel door-to-door throughout the country and interview residents in hopes of gathering data on their Gross Happiness Index.
Amber Gurung wakes up each morning, tends to his mother, brushing her hair and admonishing her to go outside to brush twice daily so she doesn't shed hair on the floor. Then he bids her farewell so he can do his job as an agent of happiness. Hiking from shanty to shanty, Amber and his partner knock on doors and meet people where they are - working in their fields, chopping wood, sitting in meditation or prayer - and they interview them to ascertain their level of happiness. Residents give a rating of 1 through 10 on indicators like worry, satisfaction, work-life balance, and number of cows, pigs, and TVs. And when a man says, I am as happy as the number of grains in my rice storage, well, that's a 7.
As Amber traverses the countryside, he considers his own happiness. He dances, sings, and plays air guitar for fun, and has a car and job, but he says life is empty without someone to share it. Similar stories of gratitude and longing come forth, as we meet the man with three wives who speaks for them, insisting they are very happy, as one of the wives wipes a tear from her eye. And the man who hangs white flags on the mountain to protect his dead wife's spirit; though she is not dead - he believes she has been reborn as his grandson. One young woman is very happy because her cow has given birth, providing her family with another milk source.
Although their lives are modest and luxuries few, the Bhutanese teach a clear lesson about the happiness derived from the simplest things. This rings especially true for those who embrace their blessings and spirituality. As one young woman expresses, I must have done something good in my past life to be born in this country.
Agent of Happiness is part of Sundance's World Cinema Documentary Competition.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
08/10/2026
Modern venues have come a long way since the tinny, echoing audio of the mid 20t...
08/10/2026
ESPN's first Super Bowl production will stream in English and Spanish on Disney+, while the ESPN App carries the full slate of game, ManningCast, studio, an...
08/10/2026
From high-school videoboards to War Eagle Productions, the Opelika native is learning how to lead shows and capture big moments
The future of live sports produ...
08/10/2026
The Television Academy and Prime Video have announced a six-year agreement making Prime Video the exclusive global home of the Emmy Awards beginning with the 20...
08/10/2026
Techex will exhibit at NAB Show New York 2026 (Booth 623, Javits Center, October...
08/10/2026
X Games has announced the appointment of Steve Rogers as Chief Operating Officer. Rogers previously served as COO of World Supercross and spent nearly a decade ...
08/10/2026
Fonn Group has appointed Trevor Spielmann as Sales Director for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Spielmann joins from EVS, where he held sales and business de...
08/10/2026
The flagship program will originate from major PG events with a four-camera production, live distribution across PGTV, social platforms
Perfect Game is bringin...
08/10/2026
Innovation rarely happens in a vacuum. More often, it happens at the point of collision: when worlds that have run on separate tracks begin to converge. That is...
08/10/2026
For decades, the production and broadcast services business has run on a familia...
08/10/2026
Uplynk, Zixi, BroadView Software, and Grass Valley have published The IP Converg...
08/10/2026
The NFL has announced the return of the Big Data Bowl, the league's analytics competition, now in its ninth year and again powered by AWS. Registration is o...
08/10/2026
Eutelsat has renewed its partnership with T l diffusion d'Alg rie (TDA), Algeria's national broadcasting network operator, for continued distribution of...
08/10/2026
Disney will livestream Super Bowl LXI on February 14, 2027, alongside the game's broadcast on ESPN and ABC. All Disney subscribers in the United States wi...
08/10/2026
RHStv and Red House Streaming have announced an expansion of their partnership w...
08/10/2026
Gray Media has announced a distribution agreement with TEGNA and DAZN to simulca...
08/10/2026
SVG readers can save 10% on registration and receive a complimentary Solutions H...
08/10/2026
PROTON Camera Innovations GmbH has been named a recipient of a 2026 Technology a...
08/10/2026
Industry leaders discuss real-world cloud workflows for live game production, pl...
08/10/2026
The next-gen audio technology joins Dolby Vision as part of Apple TV's immersive F1 experience...
08/10/2026
David France, Jesse Short Bull, Mato Wayuhi, N. Bird Runningwater, Jodi Archambau, Jhane Myers, Paul McGuire, Amber Morning Star Byars, Holly Macarro, Nick Tils...
08/10/2026
Dynamic panning plug-ins get an upgrade
Sound Particles have just announced major updates for two of their popular dynamic panning plug-ins. Energy Panner 2...
08/10/2026
New expandable instrument boasts full DMNO engine
UDO Audio have just announced the upcoming release of a new, expandable synth that packs the power of the ...
08/10/2026
Two new subwoofers added to monitoring line-up
ADAM Audio's monitoring range has just been expanded with two new DSP-equipped subwoofers, the Sub8 PRO a...
08/10/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
08/10/2026
Calrec gives broadcasters freedom of choice at NAB Show New York We're looking forward to meeting up with you all at NAB New York on 21st-22nd October.
Cal...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Globecast, a leading provider of broadcast, media and entertainment managed services, will showcase its next generation of media orchestration services at NAB S...
08/10/2026
Clear-Com played a critical role in the production communications infrastructure for Rock in Rio 2026, one of the world's largest and most recognized music...
08/10/2026
Sohonet Launches ClearView Rush: A Leap Forward in Studio Review, Built for Crea...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Ikegami announces a major expansion to its range of broadcast-quality live production cameras. Scheduled for introduction on Ikegami booth 708 at NAB New York, ...
08/10/2026
Calrec will be located at Booth 444.
Freedom to choose
The media landscape is evolving quickly, and the broadcasters best placed for what comes next will be...
08/10/2026
LiveU has announced that CRD Audiovisuel relied on LiveUs LU900Q intelligent production unit, with built-in native LiveU IQ (LIQ ) connectivity, to deliver live...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Marshall Electronics, a globally recognized provider of high-performance video solutions for broadcast, streaming, AV and professional production, will exhibit ...
08/10/2026
14-hour package also includes A Remarkable Place to Die season 2 as well as libr...
PARK CITY, UTAH - JANUARY 19: (L-R) Suraj Bhattarai, Arun Bhattarai, Dorottya Zurb and M t Artur Vincze attend the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Agent of Happiness premiere. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock)
