Congratulations! 7 Days in Bailin Temple has received the status of "Preselection" in the 2nd Madrid Art Film Festival 2017.
The festival runs September 29-30, 2017 in Madrid, Spain.
“7 Days in Bailin Temple” is a 40-minute documentary about five young students’ soul-changing experience while participating in a Zen group training program. The story takes place in Bailin Temple, one of the foremost Zen temples in China with over 1,700 years of history. For the past 23 years, every summer there has been a Life Zen Camp, where hundreds of college students from around the world receive seven days of Life Zen training.
The documentary starts with the troubles of five students.
23-year-old Liu Shuai, as his name suggests (“shuai” means “handsome” in Mandarin Chinese), is an attractive young man. He just graduated from the University of Oxford with a Master's degree in Finance and has found an enviable job in the UK. It’s hard to imagine any worries would occur with the seemingly successful Liu Shuai.
Li Shuang is a top student at the prestigious Beijing Foreign Studies University. Her career goal is to become a diplomat, even the interpreter for the Premier. When her sweet first love met her mother's strong opposition, she suffered for 3 years, having to choose either love or family kinship.
Beautiful 26-year-old female, PhD candidate, Shi Chenxi, has succumbed to anxiety due to the monotony of lab research. She feels guilty for her emotional state, often taking her anger out on her mother; another girl, Chen Huan, is deeply depressed because of the confrontational relationship between her and her father.
Just like everyone in life, students who come to the Life Zen Camp have their own troubles and conundrums. They are eager to find answers through Zen training.
At Bailin Temple, the students experience the monastic life of the monks. Waking at 4am, it’s a sixteen hour day, during which they attend classes, chant, meditate, and listen to scriptures. Routine participation in dish washing and manual labor is a prerequisite. And here, mobile phones and internet access are a no-no; it’s almost total isolation. Seven days, for most people is just an ordinary week. However, for these students, it is a rebirth experience. What happens during these seven days that their hearts experience such regeneration? “7 Days in Bailin Temple” is the unique expression from five students who travel through a process of transformation, from confusion to the consciousness of the conscious process of change, highlighting the wisdom of Zen. Meanwhile, this documentary also reflects the spiritual circumstances of young Chinese people, as well as their perspective on religious beliefs. In China, where religion is not totally open, this story presents a rarely seen, hidden-from-view, insight into the minds of China’s young people. “7 Days in Bailin Temple” provides audiences exclusive footage into the world of Chinese modern-day spirituality.
"7 Days in Bailin Temple" is presented by China Publishing Group Kunlun Media and BON Group. Both companies are leading media networks in China.
