What Remains of Us

Forced to seek refuge in India and still viewed by China as a threat to national security, the Dalai Lama had never returned to Lhasa. For 50 years, he had been prevented from crossing the mountains separating him prom his homeland. For 50 years, he had not spoken directly to Tibetans inside the country.

Kalsang Dolma, a young Tibetan refugee in Quebec, crosses the Himalayas. Into the largest prison in the world, she carries a video message recorded by the spiritual and political leader of Tibetans. Families gather around the tiny screen, transfixed, and for one of the first times, the voices of this fragile people under the yoke of suffering reach us from across the distance.

This film was shot without the knowledge of the Chinese authorities, using small digital cameras, during nearly a dozen secret forays into Tibet between 1996 and 2004.