Local TV to air documentary series on Tibet
Tibetan monks work on a religious work.
“Tibet: The Way of Nature,” a highly anticipated 4k documentary series on the exotic land, will be aired on the International Channel Shanghai from November 4.
The four-episode series explores and unravels the mystery of Tibet’s natural beauty, culture, religion and its people.
It took veterans from Shanghai Media Group’s Documentary Channel and Tibet TV Station about three years to produce the series. It was shot on 4k camera to attain higher resolution.
Before the shooting of “Tibet: The Way of Nature,” Guo Jing, one of the chief directors, and her team spent two months doing field surveys and interviewing scientists and scholars specializing in Tibetan studies. Every crew member spent more than 300 days in Tibet for the making of the documentary.
The series documents how Tibetan people live on a plateau at an altitude of 3,000 meters above sea level with great tenacity, wisdom and optimism. They have unique lifestyle, as well as a rich spiritual world.
Most of the Tibetan people adhere to the traditions. Despite tremendous social changes, they choose to live simple and tranquil lives.
Chief directors Ke Dingding (left) and Guo Jing
Tibetan people live on a plateau at an altitude of 3,000 meters above sea level.
The series trains its lens at a few ordinary Tibetan families. A lot of touching stories are told through poetic sequences. Audiences are very likely to be moved by a Tibetan mother who works hard to make and sell salt. In spite of a severe kidney disease, she never had a single thought of giving up supporting her high school children’s education.
There is also a 17-year-old Tibetan girl who takes care of 33 yak calves on her own. The tough work includes carrying heavy buckets of water a couple of times a day and finding the lost calves in a perilous forest.
To support their family, 30-year-old Zhuoma and her husband travel a long way to a primary forest in Bomi County to pick glossy ganoderma. To reach there, Zhuoma has to traverse a river by a long rope.
“Different from other documentaries, we have tried to highlight the delicate relationship between people and the special natural and geographical environment around them,” says Guo whose previous documentaries like “Circus School” and “The Fruits of Summer” were well-received by critics and audiences alike.
“The way they live has been largely determined by the environment,” she adds.
The 30-year-old Zhuoma has to traverse a river by a long rope to pick glossy ganoderma at a primary forest in Bomi County.
The series also explores the spiritual world of Tibetan people. Audiences are likely to be impressed by their honesty and optimism, wisdom of a well-balanced relationship with nature as well as their own understanding of life and nature.
The crew made trips to Tibet seven times and overcame different difficulties such as high altitude anoxia, endemic and language barrier. Five unmanned aerial vehicles crashed during the shootingk, according to Guo.
New academic viewpoints on the mysterious disappearance of the magnificent Guge Kingdom are also included in the series.
The Chinese documentary industry has been flourishing because of a growing market and diverse platform of broadcasting. Guo is glad to see that there is an increase of documentary audience in China. Original documentary contents are expected to attract a lot more young people in the following years.
“Tibet: The Way of Nature”
International Channel Shanghai
From November 4, 8:30pm
Chief director Ke Dingding on the site
The magnificent Potala Palace in Lhasa
