The Global Film Village

When The Dragon Swallowed The Sun Tibet Doc Premieres at Santa Barbara Film Festival

// February 7th, 2010 // Film Festivals

Lhagyari Trichen Namgyal Wangchuk, the 18th descendent of Tibet's Great Dharma Kings.

Seven years in the making, Director Dirk Simon’s, documentary When The Dragon Swallowed The Sun will have its world premiere this weekend. Simon stated this morning, “I am thrilled to be able to present a film that showcases such musical talent as Philip Glass, Damien Rice and Thom Yorke, together with amazing cinematography and intriguing, groundbreaking story matter. This film has the power to alter how one thinks about Tibetans and the movement to free Tibet from China.”

Santa Barbara audiences have always been interested in films that explore the conflicts and contradictions facing the movement to free Tibet from Chinese occupation.

When The Dragon Swallowed The Sun introduces the only officially recognized descendant of the Great Religious Kings of Tibet,  18 year old Lhagyari Trichen Namgyal Wangchuk,  -- crowned by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama in June 2004 in Dharamsala, India. With exclusive footage from the coronation, intimate interviews and access to the family’s archive material. The film depicts the struggle of a young Tibetan King representing a 1400 year old royal family along with the activists of his generation as they attempt to redefine their identities in this new world of shifting politics and changing religious devotion.

This film also features Richard Gere, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Dennis Haysbert narration, some of the most prominent Chinese contemporary artists, all of the key figures of the exiled Tibetan freedom movement and their followers.

Damien Rice will perform his original title song, What if I’m Wrong, on Sunday, February 7 at 12:30 pm at the Victoria Hall Theater.