View Trailer

Light of Valley: the 15th Renovation of Swayambhu

PRODUCED 2011. RUN TIME 28 MINUTES.

Since time immemorial, sacred sites have served as spiritual beacons to humanity, reminding us of our true purpose and potential in life.

Light of the Valley: the 15th Renovation of Swayambhu documents the inspiring story of the 15th renovation of the Swayambhu Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal, which is recognized as one of the most important Stupas in the Buddhist world. Renowned for its great antiquity, blessings, and power, this Stupa has been worshipped continuously through the centuries by the people of Nepal and Tibet.

In 2008, Tarthang Tulku Rinpoche sent his daughter, Tsering Gellek, to Nepal to direct the renovation, a project that is traditionally undertaken once in a century.

stupa.jpg
disassembled.jpg
artisan.jpg
Screenshot 2024-10-09 at 7.39.03 PM.png
“This is exactly the kind of work that the art history world must create in order to show that the tradition and its artwork are very much alive. The juxtaposition of exact scholarship and engagement with traditional artists and art traditions is a model for future explorations ... if I weren’t inspired already, I would be now.”
— Jeff Durham, Curator, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco

Festivals & Screenings

TELEVISION BROADCAST

  • Nationwide PBS broadcast (April 2014 - April 2016)

    Light of the Valley has been broadcast on 65 public television stations across the U.S., including PBS stations in five of the six largest markets in the country: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and San Francisco.

  • 15 University Stations (May - July 2014):  University of Michigan (CTN), Drexel University Television (DUTV), Temple University Television, Manhattan Neighborhood Network, City University New York Television (CUNYTV), York College Penn State York Campus (WRCT), Nashville Education Community and Arts Television, Chicago State University Television, University of Illinois Urbana (UPTV), Colorado STate University Television, Howard Community College, University of Maryland Television, Houston Community College TV, KTOP TV Education and Community Channel, Grand Valley University TV (WBVU) 

FILM FESTIVAL SELECTIONS

  • Ladakh Film Festival 2012

  • Jaipur International Film Festival 2013

SCREENINGS

  • David Brower Center, Berkeley, CA (World Premiere) (Aug 2011)

  • Rubin Museum of Art, New York, NY (Oct 2011)

  • De Uitkijk, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (Oct 2011)

  • Grouse Mountain Lodge, Whitefish, Montana (Nov 2011)

  • Naropa University, Boulder, Colorado (Mar 2012)

  • Portland’s First United Methodist Church, Portland, Oregon (Mar 2012)

  • Oshman Family Jewish Community Center, Palo Alto (Mar 2012)

  • Crystal Theatre, Missoula, Montana (Mar 2012)

  • Crow Collection of Asian Art, Dallas, Texas (Apr 2012)

  • Rietberg Museum, Switzerland (June 2012)

  • Filmhaus, Germany (June 2012)

  • San Francisco Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, CA (July 2012)

  • Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) (Sept 2013)

  • Wurster Hall of School of Environmental Design, UC Berkeley (April 2014) 

  • Nepal Earthquake benefit screening of Light of the Valley, Berkeley (June 2015)

  • San Francisco Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, CA - excerpt playing as part of an exhibit (May 2016)