My Reincarnation

Sunday October 2nd 2011 | 18.45
De Balie | Grote zaal 
English subtitles
+ Q&A  

USA - 82 min – 2010

My Reincarnation tells the inside story of one of the last reincarnate teachers to be trained in Tibet and of Rinpoche's son's stubborn reluctance to accept the destiny he was assigned at birth. 

Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche escaped Tibet in 1959 and settled in Italy, where he married and had two children. Son Yeshi is recognized as the reincarnation of a famous spiritual master who died after the Chinese invaded Tibet. But he grows up in Italy and wants to have nothing to do with this legacy. He neither desires to be a teacher like his father nor to return to Tibet and the monastery of his previous incarnation, in order to meet the students who have been waiting for him since his birth. Instead, Yeshi dreams of a normal life away from the devotees that always surrounded his father. As the story progresses, we see Yeshi mature from 18 to 38 years of age and Rinpoche pass from his 50-year-old prime to a 70-year-old. Their evolving lives give My Reincarnation the scope and depth of great drama.

Director/producer/camera: Jennifer Fox
With: Khyentse yeshe, Chögyal Namkhai Norbu
Editor: Sabine Krayenbühl - co-producers: Babeth M. VanLoo, Marta Donzelli, Elda Guidinette, Gregorio Paonessa, Andres Pfaeffli, Carl Ludwig Rettinger
Music: Jan Tilman Schade, Moe Jaksch
Commissioning editor: Babeth M. VanLoo
A co-production of: Zohe Film Productions, Buddhist Broadcasting Foundation, Lichtblick Film, Ventura Film, Vivo Film
In collaboration with: ZDF/ARTE, RSI-Televisione Svizzera, YLE-1 co-productions, Hartley Film Foundation, Buddhist Film Society, Impact partner