Film Overview

EAST is a series of nine shorts from Tibet, Thailand and Nepal. It's a sensory adventure into the exotic cultures of Asia. The films are short documentaries designed to get across what it feels like to be in a part of the world with old culture and deep tradition. Filmed on super 8: black/white/color. Running time: 40 minutes.

----- films ------

ROOF OF THE WORLD, 4:53, is a centered journey around the Potola Palace and Drepung Monastery in Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet. The Potola is the traditional home of the Dalai Lama and Drepung was once the largest monastery in the world.

PILGRIMS, 4:28, traces the steps of Tibetan Buddhist pilgrims as they spin prayer wheels and circle the Jokhang Temple in what is known as the Barkhor Circuit. The Jokhang is at the center of Lhasa's spiritual activity and dates back some 1400 years.

MONKS, 1:40, gets inside the courtyard of Sera Monastery during afternoon debate. Sera is considered one of the three great Gelug Monasteries. At one time Sera was a thriving monastic community with five colleges and thousands of monks.

NAMASTE, 4:45, captures the essence of the indigenous Newari people of Manedhara, Nepal. The village is located in the foothills of the Himalayan region south of Kathmandu and is home to traditional farmers who work the fields and tend the animals.

THE VALLEY, 5:02, adventures into maze-like Kathmandu on foot, in a rickshaw and through the eyes of a monkey. Buddhism and Hinduism converge in the mysterious Kathmandu Valley. Filmed at Pashupatinath, Durbar Square, Boudhanath and Monkey Temple.

BANGKOK STREETS, 3:14, moves through the streets and alleys of Bangkok on the back of a motorcycle taxi. The capital of Thailand is a concrete jungle with a flood of activity. It never sleeps and it never stands still, it's a world unto itself.

UPCOUNTRY, 6:01, observes the natives of Nong Sum during Bun Pha Wet festival. The village is in northeastern Thailand, just outside of Roi Et in a region known as Isaan. It's heavily influenced by traditional Lao culture and Theravada Buddhism.

FLOATING MARKET, 4:32, drifts down river at the Damnoen Saduak floating market in Ratchaburi, Thailand. Local merchants in big brimmed hats sell produce, spices and crafts from inside long tail boats and along riverbanks.

LAZY, 5:08, leaves the world behind and ventures far away from here to an island off the coast of Thailand called Koh Chang. Time melts into the gulf while swinging in a hammock and dreaming about forever. Kit Theung bungalow.

THE SOUNDTRACKS for the films of EAST are a combination of native Tibetan folk music and field recordings captured by fm3, Isaan music by Phuthai, Hindu Bhajan by Rashik Priya, percussion by Larry Mahlis and field recordings and music by Sean Blosl.