| Dy Saveth | |
| Native Name: | ឌី សាវ៉េត |
| Birth Place: | Phnom Penh, Cambodia, French Indochina |
| Years Active: | 1962–1975, 1993-present |
| Spouse: | Huoy Keng (divorced) |
Dy Saveth (Central Khmer: ឌី សាវ៉េត, UNGEGN: in Central Khmer pronounced as /ɗiː saʋeːt/; born 1944) is a Cambodian actress and first Miss Cambodia (1959) often referred to as the "actress of tears".[1] She is "one of the most beloved actresses from the 1960s era of Cambodian film".[2]
Dy Saveth was born in Cambodia in March 4, 1944 in a family of artists where women, at least since her grandmother, had been dancers of the Palace in the Royal Ballet.[3] She obtained her first role as an actress at age 18 in 1962 in Kbuon Chivit (The Raft of Life), where she not only become famous as the "actress of tears" but also helped the production make a "massive profit", encouraging the movie industry in Cambodia to produce more movies locally.[4] At age 19, Dy Saveth won the first beauty pageant of Miss Cambodia. In 1967, she played with Prince Sihanouk and his wife Monique in a thriller title Ombre sur Angkor (Shadow on Angkor) about the downfall of the gruesome governor of Siem Reap, General Dap Chhuon.[5] She rapidly obtained many new roles in the booming industry of Cambodian cinema, and starred in the 1969 Crepuscule (Twilight) movie, directed by Norodom Sihanouk, thus becoming "one of the best-known faces of the Golden Age of Khmer Cinema".
She married Huoy Keng, an actor, producer and film director, during the 1970s. Just as Van Vanak ran his own production company, Huoy Keng and Dy Saveth jointly ran Sovann Kiry. During the Cambodian Civil War, she continued making numerous movies, and played her most famous role in Puos Keng Kang, with her director and mentor Tea Lim Koun. She was invited to join Thai movies as well, working with Thai director Sor Asanajinda in the 1971 film, Rak Kham Kob Fa, in which she sings a duet with Thai actor Sombat Metanee (using voice dubbers), as well as in another Thai movie, Nam Jai Por Kha, in which she shared the screen with Thai actress Aranya Namwong in the sequel to Puos Keng Kang.
After the Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975, Dy Saveth, who was visiting friends in Bangkok during the fall of Phnom Penh, escaped with Huoy Keng to France, while four of her siblings were left to during the Cambodian genocide.
The couple later moved to Hong Kong. There they separated while Keng continued his film business and became one of Hong Kong's first millionaires; meanwhile, Dy Saveth abandoned acting and became a flower arranger with a florist in Paris. She later moved to Nice where she lived for 18 years before returning to Cambodia.
Saveth returned to Cambodia in 1993 and resumed acting, after she was recognized on the street by an employee of the Cambodia National Television, while she was crying for help as a nearby was had caught fire. In 1994, she joined an unreleased film title The Saw Wheel with Cambodian actor Haing Ngor.[6] Dy Saveth has been involved in training a new generation of actors and actresses since returning to Cambodia by teaching performance at the Royal University of Fine Arts, training contemporary Khmer artists such as Leang Seckon,[7] and participating in the Koun Khmer Film Camp. In 2011, she appeared in the documentary Golden Slumbers by filmmaker Davy Chou. In 2012, she made her stage debut in the play Cambodia, Here I Am by Jean-Baptiste Phou, attracting a "keen interest from audiences".[8]
Dy Saveth is divorced from her ex-husband Houy Keng, with whom she had two children.[9] Dy Saveth also has one adopted daughter.
With her impressive filmography of more than a hundred films,[10] Dy Saveth is a living legend of Cambodian cinema.
Dy Saveth, as one of the rare artists and actresses along with Prum Manh to have survived the Cambodian genocide, has become an important link in the transmission of collective memory in Cambodia.[11]
Dy Saveth was featured in many films throughout the 1960s and 1970s until the communist takeover in 1975, and later from 1993 to present. Dy Saveth has starred in over 100 Cambodian films, most of which were lost due to the Khmer Rouge era, including:
| Year | Movie | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | Kbuon Chivit (Raft Life) | ||
| 1963 | Anlong Veasna | ||
| 1964 | Kathreuy Moha Sronoh | ||
| 1965 | Veasna Akosal | Present Existence | |
| Sayon Touch Yum | |||
| Lolok Nhi Chhmoul | |||
| L'oiseau Du Paradis | Khmer-French joint film | ||
| 1966 | Khyang Sangselachey | ||
| Neang Kev Nama, Thida Muk Seh | Kev Nama | ||
| K'ek Proat Bangkang | ( | ||
| Katreuy Moha Sranah | ( | ||
| 1967 | Pao Chouk Sao | Present Existence | |
| Neang Vimean Chan | |||
| Neang Kev Nama | The film was directed by Dy Saveth herself. There are 2 versions of Neang Keo Nama released before the Khmer Rouge. | ||
| Ombre Sur Angkor (Chaya Leu Angkor) | 1st wife of general Mcholpich | ||
| Toek Phnek Leu Khnang Phnum | ( | ||
| 1968 | Unlucky Life | (Khmer/French film:1968)Present Existence | |
| Love and War | (Khmer/French film:1968)Present Existence | ||
| S'ek On Lea Bang Haeuy | ( | ||
| Kraitoung Neng Kropeu Charavan | ( | ||
| 1969 | Crepuscule (Twilight), directed by and starring Norodom Sihanouk and Huoy Keng | Neang Sopheap | (Khmer/French film:1969) Present Existence |
| Sdech Damrei Sa(King of the White Elephant) | |||
| Lea Haeuy Duong Dara | (Khmer/French film:1969)Present Existence | ||
| Sayon Koma, Neang Preah, Neang Teptida | ( | ||
| Chompa Thoung | Present Existence | ||
| 1970 | The Snake King's Wife (The Python) | This film won 6 awards in Singapore International Film Festival | |
| Lolok Nhi Chhmoul | |||
| Sayon Tuoch Yum | |||
| Sdech Damrei Sa | |||
| Botra Preah Athtih Psong Cheam Mday | |||
| 1971 | Neang Lvea Chake | ||
| Velvinh Na Bang | Rumchong | Present Existence | |
| Kolab Pailin | |||
| Srey Krob Leak | |||
| S'ek On Lea Bang Haeuy | |||
| 1972 | 'Chivit Tmey' | ||
| Bopha Angkor | |||
| Mak Theung | |||
| Preah Song Mdai | |||
| Vongveng Pruah Snae(Confused Because of Love) | |||
| Phnhaeu Kang Chang Dai | |||
| Toek Phnek Leu Khnang Phnum(Tears On The Back of a Mountain)' | |||
| 1973 | Chivit Psong Praeng(Khmer/Thai film:1973) | Soundtrack in both Khmer and Thai. Duet by Sinn Si Samouth and Dy Saveth herself in both languages. Present Existence | |
| Ok Pruot Tronum | Present Existence | ||
| Dao Dek 32 | |||
| K'ek Proat Bangkang | |||
| Thngai Lich On Sranah (When The Sun Sets, I Miss You) | |||
| Thida Sak Puos (Snake Hair) | |||
| Pous Keng Kang 2 | Soriya | (Khmer/Thai film:1973) The Sequence to The Snake King of 1972 which won 6 awards at the Singapore International Film Festival. The film includes 2 versions(A male and female)of the songs "Soriya Psong Snae" by Sinn Sisamouth and Ros Serey Sothear | |
| S'ab Nas Sralanh Nas(I Hate You, I Love You) | |||
| Anlong Veasna | |||
| 1974 | Crocodile Man | ||
| Phnhnaeu Kang Chang Dai | |||
| Pruah Aprey Srey Rong Kam | |||
| Bopha Tol Den | |||
| Champa Battambang | |||
| 1975 | Snake Girl In Drop | (Khmer/Chinese film:1975) | |
| Blood Boxing Girl | (Khmer/Chinese film:1975) | ||
| 1983 | Crocodile Men | (Khmer/Chinese film:1983) | |
| 2002 | Neak M'dai | Dy Saveth portrays herself as a mother through her own experience. | |
| 2003 | Min Yok Te Bdey Chas, S'ab Nas Bdei Kmeng (I Don't Want Old Husbands but I Hate Young Husbands) | ||
| 2004 | At Bei(3 Ace) | ||
| 2005 | The Crocodile | ||
| 2006 | Soriya L'ngeach Thngai | ||
| 2008 | Kev Phnek Samnab Chet | ||
| 2012 | I Am Super Student | ||
| 2014 | The Lost Reel | Dy Saveth's character is Srey Mom/Sothea. The film won The Spirit of Asia Award at the 2014 Tokyo Film Festival. | |