Angry Monk - Reflections on Tibet (2006), Documentary, 97 minutes, www.angrymonkthefilm.ch
Summary: This cinematic journey through time portrays the life of Gendun Choephel, an unorthodox monk, revealing a face of old Tibet that goes against popular clichés. The film uses an abundance of unique and rare historical footage available to the general public for the first time. But it does not dwell on the past; rather it skillfully oscillates between slator and author Glenn Mullin. This fascinating journey explores the caves where the early Buddhist masters meditated, enters the monasteries where the Dalai Lamas and others taught, and - at an altitude of over 16,000 feet - looks down into the famous oracle lake of Lhamo Lhatso where every Dalai Lama has had prophetic visions. It includes two special 20 minute interviews with Bhutanese master Khenpo Tashi and Glenn Mullin.

Vajra Sky Over Tibet (2006), Documentary, 89 minutes, available on DVD from Amazon and other retailers, www.vajrasky.com
Summary: Filmed entirely within Tibet, and without consent from the Chinese-controlled Communist government; John Bush travels over the Tibetan countryside, from sacred site to sacred site, major city to major city, documenting the temples and explaining along the way the Chinese politics of suppression.

Dreaming Lhasa (2005), Drama, 90 minutes, available on DVD from Amazon and other retailers, www.dreaminglhasa.com
Summary: Karma, a Tibetan filmmaker from New York, goes to Dharamsala, the Dalai Lama's exile headquarters in northern India, to make a documentary about former political prisoners who have escaped from Tibet. She wants to reconnect with her roots but is also escaping a deteriorating relationship back home. One of Karma's interviewees is Dhondup, an enigmatic ex-monk who has just escaped from Tibet. He confides in her that his real reason for coming to India is to fulfill his dying mother's last wish, to deliver a charm box to a long-missing resistance fighter. Karma finds herself unwittingly falling in love with Dhondup even as she is sucked into the passion of his quest, which becomes a journey into Tibet's fractured past and a voyage of self-discovery.

Call it Karma (2005), Documentary, 90 minutes, www.callitkarmathemovie.com/thefilm
Summary: The inspiring true story about a young Tibetan Monk named Gyalten Rinpoche who in 1995 was sent on a spiritual pilgrimage by his Master to walk 1,000 miles from his remote mountain village. Through the Holy City of Lhasa, starving and exhausted, he makes his way across the rooftop of the world to the impoverished Nepalese villages and into the sacred lands of India. Nearly six years later, he establishes a Buddhist center in the West and befriends filmmaker Geoff Browne on the streets of Vancouver. Together, they travel back to the Rinpoche’s home village where Geoff witnesses an emotional reunion between the Rinpoche, his Master and family. Full circle for the Rinpoche, but just the beginning for Geoff -- as he is now inspired to retell his friend’s remarkable life story.

Voices in Exile (2005), Documentary, 65 minutes, available on DVD from Amazon and other retailers, www.tibetanphotoproject.com/voicesinexile.html
Summary: The film opens with a short history of Tibet, with drawings, photographs and archival footage of the first rulers, the lineage of the Dalai Lama, the events leading up to the Chinese invasion in 1949...Voices in Exile moves to current day scenes in Dharamsala in north India, home of the Dalai Lama since four decades and headquarters of the Tibetan Government in Exile. Much of the film is occupied with interviews with teachers, shopkeepers, students, artists, the President of the Tibetan Youth Congress, a woman recently arrived from Tibet and others "particularly the younger generations born in exile" giving insights into the struggle of modern Tibetans living in India. Their thoughts and dreams and the reality of achieving autonomy after decades of Chinese occupation give us a glimpse into the varied viewpoints among the Tibetan diaspora.

Women of Tibet: Gyalyum Chemo-The Great Mother (2004), Documentary, 180 minutes [in three parts], www.womenoftibet.org/pages/index.php
Summary: This project consists of three one-hour documentary films revealing potent historical moments of past and contemporary Tibet. The films touch on themes of women's endurance and their struggle for freedom, social justice, peace, and human rights. Set against the stunning backdrop of the Himalayas, the Women of Tibet film trilogy shows the strength and perseverance of a people dedicated to the principles of peace, non-violence, and compassion.

Tibet: A Buddhist Trilogy (2004), Documentary, 134 minutes, available on DVD from Amazon and other retailers, www.tibetantrilogy.org.uk.
Summary: The film interweaves a personal portrait of the Dalai Lama with an intimately observed exploration of the ways in which the inner knowledge of Tibetan Buddhist culture is developed in the monasteries, through vigorous debate and solitary meditation, and communicated in to the lay community.

We are no monks (2004), Documentary, 129 minutes, www.clearmirrorpictures.com/films.htm
Summary: A story about the dreams, aspirations and desires of four strugglers living in Mcleod Ganj. Their day-to-day life under personal, social, political and economic frustrations pushes them to prove that they too can be useful people. They decide to become terrorists and kidnap some Chinese diplomats in Delhi. It turns out eventually that personal agendas were responsible for bringing them down to Delhi rather than the mission. However, in a shocking twist one of them actually does turn into a human bomb. Why did he do it? This film is thus a search for an answer to this question.

What remains of us (2004), Documentary, 77 minutes, www.nfb.ca/whatremainsofus
Summary: Kalsang Dolma, a young Tibetan refugee in Quebec, carries a video message recorded by the Dalai Lama into Tibet. Families gather around the tiny screen, transfixed, and for one of the first times, the voices of this fragile people under the yoke of suffering reach us from across the distance. This film was shot without the knowledge of the Chinese authorities, using small digital cameras, during nearly a dozen secret forays into Tibet between 1996 and 2004. This award-winning film has sparked admiration and controversy alike.

Cry of the Snow Lion (2003), Documentary, 104 minutes, available on DVD from Amazon and other retailers, www.cryofthesnowlion.com
Summary: The film brings audiences to the long forbidden "rooftop of the world" with an unprecedented richness of imagery... From rarely seen rituals in remote monasteries, to horse races with Khamba warriors; from brothels and slums in the holy city of Lhasa, to magnificent Himalayan peaks still traveled by nomadic yak caravans. The dark secrets of Tibet's recent past are chronicled through personal stories and interviews, and a collection of undercover and archival images never before assembled in one film.

Yogis of Tibet (2002), Documentary, 77 minutes, available on DVD from Amazon and other retailers, www.theyogisoftibet.com
Summary: Since the invasion of Tibet over 50 years ago, China has systematically destroyed the Tibetan culture. One of the most profound losses is the tradition of the great master yogis. The entire system which supported these fascinating mind masters has been inexorably eliminated. In order to record these mystical practitioners for posterity, the filmmakers were given permission to film heretofore secret demonstrations and to conduct interviews on subject matter rarely discussed. This profound historical, spiritual and educational film will someday be the last remnant of these amazing practitioners.

Windhorse (1999), Drama, 97 minutes, Tibetan and Chinese with English subtitles, available on DVD from Amazon and other retailers. www.windhorsethemovie.com
Summary: Windhorse tells the story of an aspiring Tibetan pop singer who wins favour with the Chinese government of occupied Tibet, but faces a crisis of conscience when her cousin, a Buddhist nun, is imprisoned and tortured for her religious beliefs. The singer and her brother join forces to secretly videotape the testimony of their cousin and sneak it out of Tibet.

Forbidden Team (2003), Documentary, 55 minutes, Available to ITSN member organisations from the Secretariat, www.forbiddenteam.com
Summary: The story of the formation of the Tibetan national football team and the team's efforts to play its first 'international' game against Greenland. The team is not recognised by FIFA (the football world governing body), the Chinese government attempts to block the match taking place, and because of the refugee status of the Tibetan players many of them are unable to obtain visas to travel to Greenland to play. Despite the many obstacles, the match takes place and although the Tibet team loses 4 - 1 to Greenland, the Team rejoices in the victory of overcoming intense political opposition by China and being able to play its first match.

Tibet - Wheel of Life, Winds of Change (2003), Documentary, 60 minutes, www.offthefence.com
Summary: Explores aspects of Tibetan life, culture and landscape never before captured on film. The film tracks pilgrims on their long, slow, graceful journeys to the holiest sites of Tibetan Buddhism, and explores the ways the land has shaped and continues to dominate the lives and beliefs of its inhabitants. Capturing the stunning magnificence of many of Tibet's monasteries and shrines, and its dramatic landscape, the film contrasts western and eastern parts of Tibet, and so highlights the meeting of ancient and modern ways of life in this remote land.

Seven Years in Tibet (1997: Jean Jacques Annaud) Feature Film, 139 minutes, available on DVD from Amazon and other retailers
Summary: Brad Pitt stared in this adaptation of the famous true story of Heinrich Harrer, an Austrian mountain climber who became friends with the Dalai Lama at the time of China's takeover of Tibet.

Kundun (1997: Martin Scorsese) Feature Film, 134 minutes, available on DVD from Amazon and other retailers
Summary; acclaimed "biopic" of the 14th Dalai Lama, focusing on his childhood, how he dealt with the invasion of Tibet and his eventual escape into exile. Nominated for 4 Oscars.

The Cup (1999), Feature Film, 93 minutes, available on DVD from Amazon and other retailers, Tibetan with English sub-titles
A humorous story about the attempts of two young Tibetan refugees at a monastery in India to follow the soccer World Cup being played in France.

Children of Tibet: The Exile Generation (2004), Documentary, 52 minutes, www.filmakers.com/indivs/ChildrenTibet.htm
Summary: Each year hundreds of Tibetan children risk their lives fleeing Tibet in search of a freer life and an education in India. Children of Tibet tells the remarkable story of three of these determined children who make the perilous journey across the Himalayas to India. Told in their own words, the children journey in the care of guides who take them by foot in the winter, leaving their families behind. Many others who went before them died in snowstorms in the mountains; others lost toes or feet to frostbite. Upon arriving in India not everything is as easy as the children expected. They do not all fit into the carefully organized school system. The film follows their lives as they prepare to leave the refugee centre in Dharamsala and enter the school system.

Phun Anu Thanu Two exile brothers (2006), Documentary, www.tibetanfilms.com/films/
Summary: A story within a story of two naughty brothers, Anu and Thanu and their unconditional love for two beautiful and educated daughters, Yangzom and Dechen. The film takes off on the 10th March 2005 when every Tibetan goes to downtown, Dehra Dun, to commemorate the 1959 Tibetan Uprising in Lhasa. The two brothers stay behind to woo the sisters.

Visioning Tibet (2005), Documentary, 56 minutes, www.visioningtibet.com
Summary: Marc Lieberman is an American ophthalmologist who decided something needed to be done about the growing blindness in Tibet and created the Tibet Vision Project, a humanitarian effort designed to bring the equipment and medicines necessary to treat cataracts to needy Tibetans, as well as training Tibetan doctors how to effectively treat common eye ailments. American filmmaker Isaac Solotaroff followed Lieberman and his associates on one of their visits to Tibet.

Words of my Perfect Teacher (2004), Documentary, 103 minutes, www.wordsofmyperfectteacher.com
Summary: The film follows three students on a quest they hope will lead to wisdom. The catch is the teacher; who is soccer obsessed, charismatic filmmaker, and citizen of the world: Khyentse Norbu an eminent Buddhist teacher. The film’s point of view is inspired by Buddhist philosophy — which says that we can’t really change human behaviour until we learn to deal with our mind. Because the mind is the starting point of all suffering, closed hearts, entrenched views and prejudice. And to study the mind, you need a teacher.