"We feel that there is an urgency to address some of the issues of exploitation and abuse in Tibetan Buddhism - and to promote a thorough discussion, that can contribute to the future integrity of the Vajrayana tradition and help students navigate its precipices, with clarity and confidence."
With your help we can get this important film finished.
With your help we can get this important film finished.
Background to the film project
In 2010 Dolma and Alastair lived in India for 6 months filming a short film called Finding Manjushri, which they produced by themselves on a shoe-string budget. The film went on to achieve numerous awards on the international film festival circuit, including best short at Moondance and Third World Indie Film Festival, as well as official selection at Cannes Short Corner.
While they were in India, they also began filming a documentary about a local famous "crazy yogi" called Lama Godi. They shot over 50 hours of footage, including numerous interviews with local Tibetans in the small Himalayan Tibetan refugee town called Bir. Due to lack of funds and time, the documentary was placed on the back burner for a number of years.
A few years later the documentary scope was revived to be not only about "crazy yogis," but also about what it means to be an authentic practitioner in the Vajrayana tradition in general - while looking at the very different styles of "yogis"... both western and Tibetan. Thanks to some funding from the Ashoka foundation, numerous interviews were filmed in France and Australia, with some experienced long-term Western students - many of whom who have completed multiple 3 year retreats under renowned teachers from Tibet.
Once the Rigpa controversy erupted, the film's purview expanded again, upon suggestion by Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, to encompass the role of the teacher in Tantric Buddhism, the potential pitfalls of the student-teacher relationship, and the survival of the Vajrayana tradition in modern times.
While they were in India, they also began filming a documentary about a local famous "crazy yogi" called Lama Godi. They shot over 50 hours of footage, including numerous interviews with local Tibetans in the small Himalayan Tibetan refugee town called Bir. Due to lack of funds and time, the documentary was placed on the back burner for a number of years.
A few years later the documentary scope was revived to be not only about "crazy yogis," but also about what it means to be an authentic practitioner in the Vajrayana tradition in general - while looking at the very different styles of "yogis"... both western and Tibetan. Thanks to some funding from the Ashoka foundation, numerous interviews were filmed in France and Australia, with some experienced long-term Western students - many of whom who have completed multiple 3 year retreats under renowned teachers from Tibet.
Once the Rigpa controversy erupted, the film's purview expanded again, upon suggestion by Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, to encompass the role of the teacher in Tantric Buddhism, the potential pitfalls of the student-teacher relationship, and the survival of the Vajrayana tradition in modern times.
What still needs to be done to complete the film
The film still needs funding for the following:
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The filmmakers - happydance films
Dolma Gunther is a script writer and director. She has degrees in Anthropology and Law. She currently lives in Sydney, Australia, and works as an editor. She has lived both in Europe for a number of years and in India in Tibetan refugee settlements, studying Tibetan and making films. In 2001 she completed a traditional rigorous three-year Tibetan Buddhist retreat in France under the guidance of Tulku Pema Wangyal Rinpoche, Jigme Khyentse Rinpoche and Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche . She has always had a passion for cinema, literature and for questioning conventional conceptual frameworks.
Alastair Donnelley has worked in film and television for the last ten years as camera operator, director of photography and artistic director on a wide variety of television productions, music videos and short films. He is also an atheist and a mechanical engineer with a university medal, a deft carpenter and a talented costume designer in his spare time. He lives in Sydney, Australia. Together they are the duo behind Happydance films. |