When the Iron Bird Flies- Film Screening Followed by Q/A with the Director Victress Hitchcock (Eagle Rock)

“When the Iron Bird Flies" takes us on an up-close and personal journey following the astounding path of Tibetan Buddhism to the mainstream of Western culture.  The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the film's director Victress Hitchcock.

In 1959, the Chinese invasion of Tibet threw open the doors to the mysterious realm of Tibetan Buddhism and suddenly this rich, ancient tradition was propelled into the modern world. Half a century later, Padmasambhava’s prophecy has come true and the teachings of Tibetan Buddhism are found in every corner of the earth.  The film investigates the question:  “In these increasingly challenging times, can these age-old teachings help us find genuine happiness and create a saner, more compassionate 21st century world?” 

Through candid interviews with contemporary teachers and practitioners -- including SMCLA members Johanna Demetrakas and George Gomez -- rare archival footage, and striking images of modern life that illuminate and make accessible the Buddha’s core teachings, the film creates a vivid and entertaining portrait of the world of Tibetan Buddhism as it is manifesting in America and the West.

APPEARANCES BY:

ANAM THUBTEN • B. ALAN WALLACE • CHOKYI NYIMA RINPOCHE • HH DALAI LAMA • DZIGAR 

KONGTRUL RINPOCHE • DZONGSAR KHYENTSE RINPOCHE • E. GENE SMITH • ELIZABETH 

MATTIS-NAMGYAL • FLEET MAULL • GESHE KELSANG WANGMO • JETSUN KHANDRO 

RINPOCHE • MATTHIEU RICARD • PHAKCHOK RINPOCHE • REGINALD RAY • DR. RICHARD 

DAVIDSON • RICHARD GERE • TSOKNYI RINPOCHE • LAMA TSULTRIM ALLIONE • and others...

Director VICTRESS HITCHCOCK  Producers VICTRESS HITCHCOCK & AMBER BEMAK

Editor CATHERINE HOLLANDER  Consulting Editor JOHANNA DEMETRAKAS  Music WILLIAM (KIP) KUEPPER IV, STEVE TIBBETTS,LOOPSY DAZY, DAVID HYKES, TRAVIS CALLISON,RAVENNA MICHALSEN and others...

Victress Hitchcock: Producer/director Victress Hitchcock graduated from London Film School with honors 40 years ago and made her first Buddhist film, REFUGE, a year later. For 10 years, she was a member of Centre Productions, a Buddhist based film company in Boulder, Colorado where she produced and directed award winning documentaries, such as "What Can I Tell You" and "Nicholas & the Baby" and "Song of the Open Road". She received a Creative Fellowship in Media from the Colorado Council on the Arts and has been awarded grants from the Ford Foundation, and both the Colorado and Arizona Humanities Councils among others. She created Chariot Productions in 1985 and became a producer of educational videos for United Learning/Discovery Communications, covering a wide range of violence and addiction prevention issues for teens. Her focus on Native American topics culminated in the award winning short narrative film, "Grandfather Sky" produced for Native American Public Broadcasting.

In 2005, she and co-producer Amber Bemak accompanied the renowned Tibetan teacher Tsoknyi Rinpoche on a life-changing journey to Tibet. From the hours of footage gathered in Nangchen, they produced the documentary BLESSINGS: The Tsoknyi Nangchen Nuns of Tibet, released in 2009. BLESSINGS has now been shown at festivals and screenings in over 100 communities worldwide, from Capetown to Zagreb, Shri Lanka to Newfoundland. With her new film, WHEN THE IRON BIRD FLIES, she extends her exploration of Tibetan Buddhism to include its remarkable journey from the monasteries of Tibet to mainstream modern western culture.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT THE FILM

 “This film is a riveting, poignant and beautiful window into the flowering of Tibetan Buddhism in the West. Please watch and listen – it touches the place in us that longs to realize truth and live from our awakened heart.”

~  Tara Brach, Buddhist teacher and author of Radical Acceptance

“When the Iron Bird Flies chronicles the unlikely advent of Tibetan Buddhism into America and its capacity to influence and offer effective methods for dealing with life's challenges, whatever the background. This is an important documentary… that chronicles Tibetan Buddhism’s ability to adapt to cultural environment while maintaining its basic integrity. Tibetan Buddhism has now expanded into so many countries and wherever it lands, it remains relevant, applying itself as a potent medicine to the condition of suffering which as a human family we all experience."

~ Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo