Thath-Jith-Thon-Nang
Official Trailer
‘Thath-Jith-Thon-Nang’ delves into the story of ‘Gataberaya,’ possibly one of the most revered traditional musical instruments in Sri Lanka. For centuries, Gataberaya has provided the rhythmic backdrop for traditional dance genres in the island nation, playing four basic tones, namely, ‘Thath-Jith-Thon-nang.’
I produced this documentary in 2014 with my second-year students pursuing a General Degree at the University of Kelaniya as part of their coursework. Alongside the students, the Drama & Theatre and Image Arts Unit within the Department of Fine Arts, and Vihayas Production, collaborated on this project.
The students were organized into different teams for the project. Over five months, we frequently visited the ‘Alawala’ village in Attangallya, where traditional drum makers continued their craft, gathering information and insights for the documentary. We filmed ‘Thath-Jith-Thon-nang’ over a period of four months, from December 2013 to March 2014.
The documentary was first screened at the Drama & Theatre and Image Arts Unit within the Department of Fine Arts at the University of Kelaniya.
Screenshots
Film Credits
Director – Prasad Aluthwattha
Cinematography – Prasad Aluthwattha
2nd Camera – Shanaka Kalhan Editor – Shanaka Kalhan/Prasad Aluthwattha
Music – Amith Guru Production Supervisor – Prasad Aluthwattha
Camera Asst. – Maduranga Nuwan / Thilina Fernando / Chaminda Kumara / Ranjith Kumara
Research & Production Team
Nipuni Nidarsha / Malika Dayarathne / Sachini Perera / Maduranga Nuwan / Uththara Sapurnika / Thilina Fernando / Chathura Madhushan / Dinusha Lakmali / Dilini Sugandhika / Bagya Dasanayake / Maheema Weerasinghe / Suraweera Bandara / Ranjith Kumara
Production Manager – Prasanna Herath Line Producer – Madhumali Priyangika
Lighting – Kasun Abenayake / Nuwan Srilal
Produced by – 2014 Image Art General Degree Students / VIHAYAS Productions / Image Art Unit – University of Kelaniya
