Exploring storytelling and self-expression with LopsangSoepa - A Zinemaking WorkshoP

The workshop will be facilitated by Lobsang Soepa, Tibetan comic book artist, illustrator and muralist from Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh. He is the author of the Khando Drowa Sangmo comic series.

Learn how to make a zine about a story you want to share with everyone or just for yourself and take it home with you. Materials will be provided on site. Optional but you are encouraged to bring any magazines, pamphlets, photos, reference pictures that you would like to add to your zine.

*Advance registration is mandatory

Tenzin Lhadon | 2024 | India | Fic. | Tibetan | 34’

A Tibetan Short Film by the Chisem Foundation, is a testament to the power of vulnerability and the beauty of embracing one's true self. Set against the backdrop of Tibetan culture, this uplifting short film weaves together an upbeat rhythm and a heartfelt verse, capturing the journey of individuals as they navigate their personal struggles and societal expectations.

The Tibet Film Festival’s Short Film Competition first launched in 2010. Since then, the competition has become an integral part of Tibet Film Festival, providing a vital platform for Tibetans to showcase their cinematic talent.

Each year, Tibet Film Festival invites aspiring filmmakers to present their voices, creativity and unique perspectives to a distinguished international jury of filmmakers, artists and scholars who select a winner for the top award, the “Yak Prize”. With varying themes each year, the competition showcases a wide range of work from across the globe and audiences in each Tibet Film Festival location vote for their favourite short film.

This year we're bringing a fabulous lineup of five preselected films from our competition to the student community at Sarah College.

At this event, the audience will cast their vote for the Dharamsala Audience Award!

Tao Okamoto | 2025 | USA | Fiction | English / Tibetan | 22 mins

Born to Tibetan immigrants in the United States, eleven-year-old Pema grows up in a sheltered, close-knit community, constantly cared for by her overprotective father. But an unexpected event shatters her familiar world and reveals the harsh realities from which her father has protected her.

The six short films offer insight into contemporary Tibetan filmmaking and showcase a diversity of Tibetan perspectives, stories, and aesthetics across genres and geographical contexts. 

A Phone Call - Kunchok Rabten | 2025 | India | Fic. | Tibetan with English subtitles | 14’
A single Tibetan mother sends her only son to India in the hope of a better future but fate has a different plan.

Memories of Monsoon - Dolker Angotsang, Manfei Li, Pimonwan Poli | 2022 | Switzerland | Animation | 4’ 

A young woman finds a dead dragonfly and looks into its eyes. For a brief moment, she is transported back to memories of her childhood and her grandmother.

Origins - Loden | 2022 | Tibet | Fic | Tibetan with English subtitles | 14’

After the sudden death of his lover, Karma plunges into the abyss to follow her. Trapped between life and death, his consciousness drifts in a mystical limbo. In the hospital, doctors try to save Karma with modern technology, while Tibetan shamans attempt to reconcile his spirit with their traditions.

Watermill / Chunthag - Jamyang Phuntsok | 2024 | India | Fic. | Tibetan, Hindi with English subtitles | 10’

Mindruk, a Tibetan tsampa (roasted barley flour) seller, relies on a nearby Indian village for sourcing the barley grains and grinding them. Having secured a big order, he goes to the village but struggles to find the watermill owner. As his wife pressures him to get the job done, he hears conflicting accounts about the missing miller.

The Hunter and the Skeleton - Gentsu Gyatso | 2012 | Tibet | Animation | Tibetan with English subtitles | 27’

This animated film is an adaptation of a traditional Tibetan folktale in which a hunter encounters a mysterious, skeletal creature in the wilderness. Uncertain whether the creature is a friend or foe, the hunter soon becomes hunted and has to outwit the fearsome skeleton.  Through this unsettling encounter, the film explores fear, desire, karma, compassion, and the fragile relationship between humanity and nature.  By combining traditional Tibetan storytelling, the Tibetan Karzé dialect, and contemporary animation, the film presents an ancient tale using modern visual language.

Tibet Film Festival India is hosting a zine-making workshop on Wednesday, October 28th from 5:00 to 6:00pm at Barako Café, McLeod Ganj. The workshop will be facilitated by Lobsang Soepa, comic book artist, illustrator and muralist from Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh. He is the author of the Khando Drowa Sangmo comic series.

Learn how to make a zine about a story you want to share with everyone or just for yourself and take it home with you. Materials will be provided on site. Optional but you are encouraged to bring any magazines, pamphlets, photos, reference pictures that you would like to add to your zine.

A Tibetan Short Film by the Chisem Foundation, is a testament to the power of vulnerability and the beauty of embracing one's true self. Set against the backdrop of Tibetan culture, this uplifting short film weaves together an upbeat rhythm and a heartfelt verse, capturing the journey of individuals as they navigate their personal struggles and societal expectations.