September Festival 2008

[Representing: Pagan spirituality] Well what an amazing adventure these five short films are. I found it to be a creative peek into a variety of situations that provoked an emotive response.
 
I started the journey relating to the family in Buddhists, educated in the myths with Ming, intrigued with The Wall, repulsed by Redemption then left thinking after Ceasing.

I related to Buddhists because it's how we live; my kids will choose their religion when they are old enough. I also do not attend as many retreats now because of them. I will when they are older.

Redemption repulsed me for two reasons. I have issues with spousal abuse, and I'm conflicted on the death penalty.

If this is a "sampler" of what is to come at Campfire, then we're in for a treat.

[The Wall] An engaging portrayal of a person who is facing fundamental, existential doubt. The experience is specific but the challenge universal: what happens to us when we lose faith in what we had come to accept as unquestionable? Thought provoking and compelling.

I found the short movie Buddhists particularly interesting: the reference to the implications of our actions, speech, even thoughts, on ourselves, our environment is something that is ill-understood. It is true that we all know the negative effects of “wrong actions” and the positive effects of the reverse, but, what about those of our thoughts, do they too have as much of an effect?

Buddhists recognises this age-old idea in Indian culture and gives it due importance. I agree wholeheartedly that if we were all to practice “good karma” on all planes of our existence, physical, emotional, and mental we would create a more harmonious existence.

Redemption is a gripping look into the life of Ben Callaghan, who is struggling to deal with his intense guilt. Ben is driven almost to the point of insanity by the unspeakable crime he has committed.

For me personally, I found this film confronting and yet it strengthened my belief that God's mercy is boundless.

[Buddhists] I've always been a fan of documentary, of real experiences, and real people.  This short film focuses on the lives of a not so normal English family; a family of Buddhists in a predominantly Christian society. Most interesting is the story of how they live their lives, and the balance which must be struck between the challenges of religious practice, and the demands of a modern world. As a minority religion in England, it shows how the lifestyles and the values of Buddhism sometimes compliment (and sometimes break away from) those in Western society.

Most engaging was the way in which the film looked at common cultural experiences, such as Christmas, from this unique perspective. Although Christmas does not hold any spiritual significance for them, it is still an opportunity for this family to come together to celebrate being together and giving gifts – indeed to embrace the practices of Christianity, even though their beliefs are different. It is the way that this film reveals a way to embrace aspects of Western society from a Buddhist perspective that is perhaps most interesting. It shows us a kind of progressive approach to living ones own spirituality actively. The family also emphasises a certain openness towards spirituality as something which should be left to individuals to choose, and live in their own way, just as they are.

For myself as a Buddhist and a Westerner I found it particularly interesting, as this film highlights the kind of experiences I have witnessed with Buddhism in Australia. It managed to convey personal stories of everyday people in a way which was honest and engaging, and which resonated with my own experiences.

[The Wall] The protagonist keeps experiencing a sort of attack of existentialist angst on his way into work – very inconvenient in the Melbourne rush-hour. Lack of motivation; meaninglessness; negativity; the futility of existence. Now, where can he go from here? Ah, he's a media student, so how about making a film about it.  Maybe the meaninglessness can itself gain meaning! But of course the same lack of motivation hinders the dramaturgical process…

Our hero feels that there is a glass wall separating him from the world; and he yearns to break through it and become his own alter ego, whom he can see on the other side of the wall, actively enjoying life and contributing to it.  The film ends on a note of hope as he begins to take control over his own destiny.  He cracks the only smile in the film as he relishes the possibility of breaking through the imaginary wall and joining the active world.

We get the happy feeling that our hero is about to become not only socially empowered and active, but he will also be wise, having experienced the futile, inward-looking approach to life and having found the motivation to progress away from it. His life will henceforth be happy and positive – in contrast to the comfortably-off Buddhists of Brighton, who keep going off to retreats but still lead unsatisfied lives, as shown by having a string of relationships with no end in sight.

[Ming] This is a superb piece of animation and storytelling. I loved the power of this creative myth.

It was my aim to say something positive, interesting and stimulating about at least one of these films. I’m aware of how uncool it is to be critical and how sensitive we all are to what might seem to be intolerance. Instead I’ve chosen to be candid.

Buddhists = Nothing.
Sure, it’s a snapshot of a Buddhist couple; it was peaceful and reflective but uninspiring. Having watched it three times I still come away saying “so what”. It failed to give Buddhism the honour it is due as a philosophy of how to live at peace in a world of suffering.

Ming (Bright) = Random.
The animation in this film is absolutely delightful but the randomness of the story left me feeling frustrated. How is it that the God of Thunder kills someone who he mistakenly thinks is wasting rice? Isn’t that excessive? Then it all gets random with birds turning into people and people turning into dragonflies and the god of Thunder is changed into someone handsome, all to explain why we see lightening before thunder. I hope Grandma liked it because I sure didn’t. My God, instead of killing people for the smallest things, came and died on the cross to save the very ones who were killing him.

The Wall = Self-indulgent.
Watch the film on this site called the “The Butcher’s Wife” www.campfire.net.au/node/235 and you will understand why I struggled to have sympathy for this documentary. He suffers from a form of block or depression because work is boring. We live in a culture that has become intoxicated with ‘self.’ We’ve turned so far in on ourselves that we are afraid to feel sad, bored, upset, frustrated… so we go numb or succumb to ‘the wall.’ People need to have a hope and motivation outside of ‘self.’ Our purpose in life is to love God and love leople not to please (love) ourselves. The guy with the wall needs a higher purpose, something outside of himself to live for and then he might find that he can face the boredom of his job.

Redemption = Disturbing.
On a number of levels I was disturbed, which I think was the point of this drama. It was well shot, with an interesting uncomfortable closeness to the characters, but I wanted to pull back. It was intensely emotional which was unpleasant. All of this is ok with me. But I was disturbed with how undefined ‘redemption’ was. Is redemption unconditional acceptance? Remember the guy killed his wife but says he loves her; we should be disturbed by this mangling of the word ‘love.’ If redemption is unconditional acceptance then where is justice for the wife? God forgives murderers who seek forgiveness but Christ pays the penalty of their murder so that love and justice sit together in harmony. This was lacking in this film and for this reason it disturbed me.

Ceasing = Nauseous.
Once was definitely enough for me, it made no sense. Was it about life ceasing and beginning again? This film made me work hard emotionally and intellectually but gave me no obvious reward for enduring an unpleasant experience.