Staff writer Annabelle Duggan explores how the London Tibet Film Festival is showcasing Tibetan cinema, culture and emerging creative voices.
Tired of Hollywood cinema? Are K-dramas getting a bit… been-there-done-that?
In its biggest year yet, the London Tibet Film Festival is hosting a specially curated season at the Kagyu Samze Dzong Buddhist centre in Bermondsey.
Dharamsala – Zurich – Berlin – London
These are the only global cities that are currently celebrating Tibetan cinema. Now is the time to see Tibet’s newest, freshest voices, right here in central London. With its sole focus on Tibetan voices – both inside and outside of Tibet, the season promises to showcase Tibet’s young talent and bring it to a wider global audience.
This signifies a growing momentum behind the need to project non-Western voices in global cinema. Right now, small-scale initiatives like these that push against our established mode of consuming and engaging with cinema are paramount. Through amplifying practically unheard voices in the Western cinematic landscape, this season is here to share Tibetan creative excellence with a London audience through our universal language of film.
Speaking of Tibetan excellence, the venue also has a Tibetan Tearoom offering authentic Tibetan Butter Tea and… dare I say, London’s best chai (for £2.50). This is a testament to the wider importance of sharing Tibetan culture here in London and in the world, and critically, making it accessible.
Running on a pay-what-you-can donation basis, the season encourages its audience to help support the cost of running the season – and that’s it. A minimum of £5 for the screenings is kindly asked for, making it a very student-friendly outing!
The season began on Thursday 21 May, and returns every Thursday evening for a month, running the following screenings and talks:
Week 1: The Story Behind The Lens
21st May, 7-8:30pm
We will be introduced to the revolutionary work of Dhondup Wangchen, the director to whom the TFF is dedicated. Co-founder of the London Tibet Film Festival, Dechen Pemba, who was involved with Wangchen’s work, will join in conversation.
Week 2: Spotlighting Tibetan Women Filmmakers
28th May, 7-8:30pm
This week’s focus is on groundbreaking works made exclusively by female Tibetan filmmakers, hosted by TFF London’s Tashi Samuels.
Week 3: Enlightened Vision
4th June, 7-8:30pm
The evening will feature a screening of Fathima the Oracle, directed by Geleck Palsang. Followed by a discussion and Q&A with resident Lama Zangmo.
Week 4: The Diaspora Lens
11th June, 7-8:30pm
The screening of two award-winning shorts:
Royal Café, directed by Tenzin Dazel
My Sweet Pala, directed by Tao Okamoto
There will be a Q&A and discussion with Zurich-based actress Pema Shitsetsang, sharing her experiences as a Tibetan woman in the Swiss film and television industry.
With topics ranging from political movements and exile to finding community with strangers in a Parisian café, there is something to inspire, uplift or move everyone.
You can book your ‘cushion’ by clicking the links above.
Inspired by the radical political acts of renowned self-taught Tibetan filmmaker Dhondup Wangchen in 2008, the TFF returns stronger than ever this May, offering screenings of award-winning short films, documentaries, Q&As (and even meditation) with Tibet’s emerging talent from across its diaspora. Celebrating Tibetan creatives and their stories from across the world, including Switzerland, London, New York, India and France – this truly is a powerful showcase of diversity and universality.
London’s branch of the TFF is a young one, having been founded only in 2019 by Dechen Pemba and Kunsang Kelden, both female Tibetan activists and film industry professionals in their own right.
By supporting this community-focused initiative, as well as an independent, volunteer-run centre, is there anything better for a broke, curious and cultured King’s student? And what better way to mindfully celebrate Tibet’s emerging cinema than in a meditation centre so close to campus?
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