Lester commends ‘Do Not Erase’

Commenting on the internationally acclaimed young filmmaker, Asitha Ameresekere's 'Do Not Erase', Sri Lanka's prominent director Dr. Lester James Peries said that the film stands as an unusual film. The veteran director commented that the promising filmmaker through his moving tale set in the way of a 'video letter' made by a mother whose son is in the Iraq war has achieved his target. ‘The filmmaker has taken the role of the mother who narrates the story and the recipients, we all, who watch it become the sons’ Dr. Peries stated.

The filmmaker takes over the role of amateur video recording person and the film has to be viewed under this notion, he added.‘The great triumph of the film is that it was voted as the best at the BAFTA awards by the world's leading technicians of cinema and TV,’ said Dr. Peries whose filmmaking too started in Britain with the short documentary 'Soliloquy'.

Jeanette Rourke, the Annie in 'Do Not Erase'

'Do Not Erase' revolves around, Annie (Jeanette Rourke) who sends video diaries to her 19 year-old son, Darren, who is stationed in Iraq with the British Forces. She keeps him updated on all the news from home. But it is not long before the video becomes more than just a diary. 'Do Not Erase' is set against the backdrop of the Iraq conflict, exploring its impact on an ordinary family in the north of England.

The film won the Best Short Film Award at the 60th British Academy Film Award (BAFTA) in addition to Skoda Audience Award (International Competition)-2006, Internationales KurzFilmFestival Hamburg; Jury Award and Audience Award, Best Dramatic Short Film Award, 16th Arizona International Film Festival and Audience Award, Augsburg International Film Festival.