The second of Arnaud Desjardin’s films about Tibetan Buddhism in which he looks more closely at the religious side of the culture, with an examination of the rites and rituals, yogic practices and meditation involved in Tantric Buddhism.
Arnaud Desjardins: The Message of the Tibetans 1, Buddhism
In 1964 and 1965 the French filmmaker Arnaud Desjardins gained access to the Tibetan community in exile, in the first filming of their life and culture allowed by the Dalai Lama since going into exile, which was compiled into two films which I will be showing over the next couple of weeks.
Touch and Go, Choygam Trungpa’s Epic Journey to the West
The heroic escape of Chögyam Trungpa Rimpoche and his followers from Tibet during the Chinese invasion of the country in 1959.
Ani Choying Drolma – Four Songs
Four wonderful and heartfelt songs sung by the Tibetan Nun Ani Choying Drolma. The first is a music video recorded at the Swayambhunath Temple in Kathmandu, Nepal. The others were recorded live in Germany.
Tibet on the Edge of Change
A romantic view of Tibetan peasant life is offered in this 1994 documentary, which focuses on the ordinary day-to-day life of the people, who are trying to eke out a living on the plateau.
The Lion’s Roar – A Portrait of the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa
A biography of the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, who was one of the most respected and loved Tibetan teachers of his time. It includes historical footage of the Karmapa, his visits to America, and his funeral in Sikkim in 1981.
The Tibetan Book of the Dead: The Great Liberation
The second of these films follows Lama Pema Chodan and his 13 year old novice Thubten Tsering as they attend to the ceremonies following the death of a young family man in Ladakh.
The Tibetan Book of the Dead: A Way of Life
This is the first of a sensitive two-part documentary showing how death and dying is contextualised in the traditional Buddhist culture in Ladakh.
The Lost World of Tibet
This is a wonderful collection of colour and black and white film taken in Tibet during the last years of its independence, as it has been preserved by the British Film Institute.
