I was saddened to learn today that Dith Pran died last night of pancreatic cancer. His tragic life was portrayed in the brilliant film The Killing Fields, which has been a great influence on me as a screenwriter. At one point while working on one of my screenplays, I emailed Sydney Schanberg to ask his advice on writing truth. I cannot quote him verbatim but I have the email saved somewhere.
Pran survived the brutal Khmer Rouge regime and came to the US where he worked for the New York Times as a photojournalist. He was an inspirational person in that he suffered such tragedy and was able to continue living life.
He learned only three months ago that he had terminal stage 4 pancreatic cancer. He approached it with Buddhist calmness. What he said in response to discovering his cancer really struck me deep:
“I want to save lives, including my own, but Cambodians believe we just rent this body,” he said. “It is just a house for the spirit, and if the house is full of termites, it is time to leave.”
Dr. Haing S. Ngor portrayed Dith Pran in The Killing Fields. Dr. Ngor was tragically shot by Asian gang members in Los Angeles in 1996. Upon his death, Pran commented:
“He is like a twin with me…He is like a co-messenger and right now I am alone.”
Godspeed, Mr. Dith Pran. Thank you for being an inspirational and enlightening human being. I hope you are with your twin.
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