When a group of 40 forward-thinking, powerful and influential leaders
were invited to a brainstorming session that was aimed at solving the
world's problems, they had high hopes. The fact that the Dalai Lama
would be part of those discussions didn't hurt either.
Watching the scene unfold, it's easy to be skeptical of a doe-eyed
conglomeration of Westerners marching through Tibet trying to develop a
plan that would affect the entire world.
I was really excited too," says director Khashyar Darvich. "And I
thought all these interesting thinkers were sitting down with Dalai
Lama and it would be lovey-dovey and go smoothly."
After 140 hours and five days of footage, what happens in "Dalai Lama
Renaissance" is unexpected, heartwarming and enlightening for the
audience.
"It's ironic that everyone had this chance to change the world in a
positive way," he says, "but it happened not in the way that everyone
thought."
The film not only unveils egos and optimism, but it's an intimate look
at the Dalai Lama's interpersonal actions. While the rest of the world
looks to him not only as the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, but
as an insightful and inspiring peacemaker, he still views himself as a
"simple Buddhist monk."
While His Holiness recognizes his role as a leader, he is quick to shed
too much emphasis on his actions. Rather, his advice and feedback is
the best way of working with the Dalai Lama.
And surprisingly, it's just that which takes the group by surprise.
"Whoever spends time with him, or hears him in a public talk, you're
impacted on some way on a deep level," says Darvich. "Seeing the
example of someone who walks this talk and who lives a life of
compassion toward others, that in itself is transforming."
Darvich himself, an Los Angeles-based filmmaker, has met with the Dalai
Lama on two other occasions for films - the way he found himself on
this project as well.
But, like the effortlessness of the plot which rolls out as events take
place in "Dalai Lama Renaissance," so did his filming process, despite
hiccups such as dealing with electricity in a third world country,
power outages and equipment failure.
In the movie, someone is quoted as saying, "humans plan, and then God laughs." So, humans make different plans.
It couldn't be more true for both the actual filming, and the message that comes from the film.
"It's a story of these Westerner with an optimistic idea, and they
thought it was going to happen, a collective of solving the world's
problems," he says. "They didn't expect the real change would be
inner-out transformation."
christine@aspendailynews.com
