To understand the complexity of this issue - that there is much more than one perspective that needs to be levelled on this issue, please take a moment and read this
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/foreign/richardspencer/april08/teacherbaicomestolondon.htm
Just checked on BBC website and it leads with her ambush on the Olympic route. Wonder whether it was planned. Anyway her soundbite carried the day so at least she was able to make some comment regarding human rights. Tough for the police though. Damned if they do, and probably damned if they don’t. Not sure I could say the same about Gordon Brown, though who rather feebly excused his lack of a decision on the boycott question on the fact the Dalai Lama wasn’t asking for one.
Surely it would be better if he made a decision because he thought it was the right or wrong thing as opposed to ’delegating’ the responsibility to the Dalai Lama.
I think this could be a fast moving story. The question is whether the Chinese government are going to be able to withstand the pressure over the next five months. Have a look at this statement from the Dalai Lama. I wouldn’t exactly say he is pulling his punches but he is reiterating, more than once, the importance of keeping to non-violence - I think this is very politically astute as he must keep the sympathy of the world with him and non-violence is the way to do that. Witness the efforts of the Chinese state media in trying to refocus the attention on the violence from the riots.
So the Dalai Lama is keeping the 9 member Chinese politburo on the backfoot. Question is how will they react? Incidentally I think a boycott of the Olympics could well backfire, making the Tibetans hated in an already febrile nationalistic atmosphere. And lets face it, this issue is going to take a long time (way past the Olympics) to sort out.
We are the number one story on Variety. Can’t do better than that!
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117983500.html?categoryId=19&cs=1&nid=3078
we have a theatrical release…Eighteen cinemas across the UK in May. Bring it on!
Had the bizarre experience of going on Sky News on Sunday morning. Having had three hours sleep, I think all nerves had been negated by exhaustion and did a great interview. I suppose that I shouldn’t be suprised that honing the message gets better with practice, but I was rather suprised that it definitely improved due to a lack of sleep and a hangover. Wish I could have said the same for my panel performance.
So, with the screening over, the marketing begins. The event seemed to go well, despite numerous problems - a ticket fiasco, celebs that didnt turn up, various rows, a voice over that had disappeared from the front of the film, and an after party that was a free-for-all and yet despite all that, nobody seemed to notice. The film went down well, the party was just what it needed to be and everyone who had to get in, got in. So to all those involved, JJ, Scot, Rich, Dan, Jane, and especially Emma - well done. Thanks to LIDF and Prince Charles for hosting the show and dealing with last minute panel changes, and an especial thanks to the panel itself - Andrew Fischer, Dibyash Anand, Kate Saunders and the Chair Nick Walker. Finally Now the real work begins - getting the message out but we already have a bit of help - check out this review
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/film/2008/03/could_this_documentary_make_a.html
What with tickets and updating the film, the last minute rush is on. There is a massive demand for the film which must be good, although with current events I am hardly suprised. JJ (AP) has come up with a great idea of putting ‘Dalai Lama comes to Chinatown’ on ticker board at the cinema. Must be worth a good photo-op (any photo editors reading this please get in touch!). I wonder what the Chinese residents will make of it all. I am hoping that there will be a few in the audience as the Chinese perspective is critical. Anyway basically we seem to be on track. Also excited by possibility of a theatrical deal with Picturehouse for UK release but more will be revealed tomorrow. Anyway time for bed - having spent the last two days looking at audio to drop into the film, have finally realised that none is needed. The fact I felt good about that, must mean that things are ok.
What a relief - all tickets have now gone for Saturday’s premiere at the Prince Charles Cinema. I never doubted it…well maybe a little at the start. Anyway next question is whether we should organise another screening - perhaps at the Coronet in Notting Hill. Just come back from watching Love in the Time of Cholera, with a magnificent performance from Javier Bardem. The film has been slated but I thought it was brill. Classic love story based in Colombia. The book though is supposed to be one of the all time greats. So, if you are a fan then maybe it would be a disappointment. Good job The Unwinking Gaze follows no script!
Hi - Welcome to our Blog. We are the team behind the Unwinking Gaze - which we believe to be an important and rare film on the XIV Dalai Lama as he reaches out to both his own people and the Chinese government. The film is being released at a very appropriate time. As you probably know there have been riots and protests in Tibet unseen since 1989 (and perhaps surpassing those) and it is all the more significant because it is the Olympic year and China knows that the spotlight of the world is upon them. For that reason our film has the opportunity to inform both those in China and perhaps more suprisingly, those in the West. The debate, as a result, will hopefully be elevated to more than just the evil Chinese and the heroic Lama (in the West) or the exploitative West and ‘Wolf in Monks Clothing’ (in China). Our mission is to get this film out as far and wide as we can, so we can show a man (or monk) who has been greatly misunderstood by both sides. We hope that in doing so, better decisions will be made by those who affect the future of Tibet and China. We hope you will join us for the ride!
