He is the director of the film that stars Hollywood and Nepali actors — Rachel Hurd-Wood, Raj Ballav Koirala, Suesha Rana, Gunner Wright and Desh Bhakta Khanal. Set against the backdrop of the beautiful Annapurna mountains, the film is about “learning to live well, to love, to give… to change”.
Two worlds collide when spoiled British heiress Elizabeth James visits Nepal in an attempt to fix her image through charitable acts and meets Laxmi, who is the headmistress of a small orphanage. And then there is pilot Ajit Thapa and American photojournalist Colt Morgan who discover that they too have reasons to change …
The film is releasing on September 25 in Nepal.
Writing to THT McFarland says that the themes and characters in his debut film are all based on “experiences and thematic elements that have been important” to him trying to show “the beauty, love, life and change”.
McFarland has worked as a commercial director for many years — he has produced a number of films and documentaries and has been involved in editing and script writing as well. But “this film is more important to me because of what it represents, rather than simply being my narrative debut”.
“I got my pilot’s licence when I was 17. My identity was kind of wrapped up in being a pilot. I got to fly among the beautiful Rocky Mountains. The character of Ajit definitely represents that. Prabhujee, the playful and endearing boy, represents my mother. All of the characters represent some aspect of my life — learning to give and to love and to feel, but Laxmi represents a benevolence and a purity that I really admire and identify with in people. It is rare. When I first visited Nepal, I saw that and knew that I wanted to write Laxmi to not only represent that richness of spirit (Goddess of Wealth), but really to represent Nepal. She is the centre of the story.”
In this venture, McFarland has brought two worlds of actors — Hollywood and Nepal. Of this and his experience working with them, he shares, “The actors were amazing. I am so lucky to have found each one of them. It felt like karma to find them — Raj, Rachel, Suesha, Desh, Gunner — they all are dear friends too now. I thought I was really going to have to work to get the performance I wanted out of Nepali actors, but I was so wrong. They all brought an incredibly natural and heart-felt performance to the table.”
The director, who prefers narrative films, has a degree in music (Brigham Young University) and he feels it doesn’t seem very far from directing because “I consider directing to be a very musical thing”. His did sound recording through his college and then started producing recordings which led to producing films and which brought him to directing. He’s always been a photographer.
Highway to Dhampus is the first independent feature film shot almost entirely in Nepal by a foreign director and crew.
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