"Sounds of Silence" offers a glimpse into the erasure of vital histories embedded into the national consciousness of Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia, where a pristine present is superimposed over a tainted past. Throughout the film, silence is used to show the various ways erasure of our history is enforced - by citizens, by governments, and by the soundless erosion of time. Southeast Asia’s tumultuous past means that its history is full of moments that cast a shadow over the present. Denial is unsurprising and understandable. The film contends that even though acknowledgement is challenging, it is critical that Southeast Asia confronts its past in order for it to come to terms with it.