Verdiana

Verdiana 2020

1

After a big fight, a couple wakes up with an unbelievable problem: he can't speak and she can't hear anything. Doctors and exams are useless. A female Zen Master and a very special plant come to their aid.

2020

A Touch of Zen

A Touch of Zen 1970

7.60

Gu Sheng-zhai, an artist in his early 30s, still lives with his mother, but he is suddenly shaken by the arrival of Yang Hui-zhen, a mysterious princess on the run. Yang brings Gu into her circle of protectors, including a nameless monk whose spiritual guidance transforms him into a valiant fighter.

1970

Enlightenment Guaranteed

Enlightenment Guaranteed 2000

6.90

Two middle aged German brothers - one New Age and recently divorced, the other uptight and sceptical - travel to a Zen monastery in Japan in search of enlightenment, or perhaps just in search of themselves.

2000

Nightfur

Nightfur 2011

5.00

Frank, an introspective astrophysics major, visits a remote lab to work with his mentor; doctor Roberts. After his arrival, he finds that Helen; a young woman seemingly from another world, a metaphysical realm, has been taken in by the doctor. The unexplainable phenomena that follow force Frank and doctor Roberts to look at life from a different angle.

2011

The Zen Diary

The Zen Diary 2022

7.10

Tsutomu lives alone in the mountains, writing essays, cooking Zen food with the vegetables he grows and the mushrooms he picks in the hills. His routine is happily disturbed when Machiko, his editor and love interest, occasionally visits. Tsutomu seems content with his daily life. On the other hand, he still hasn't let go of his wife's ashes, although she died 13 years ago.

2022

Zen

Zen 2009

7.10

In the early 1200s, Dogen brought Chinese Zen philosophy to Japan, and established the Japanese Zen school of Buddhism. He taught that a person was capable of realizing Buddhahood within himself, by way of Zazen. Zazen is extended hours of sitting and meditating to achieve a state of “Mu” (nothingness, or empty existence).

2009

Aeon

Aeon 2004

1

Dealing heavily with perceptions of time, Aeon documents the urban cityscape as Wellington transforms through a zen-influenced eternal cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth within a 24-hour period.

2004

Kochuu

Kochuu 2003

6.00

A film about modern Japanese architecture, its roots in the Japanese tradition and its impact on the Nordic building-tradition. Winding its way through visions of the future, traditions, nature, concrete, gardens and high-tech, KOCHUU tells us how contemporary Japanese architects strive to unite the ways of modern man with the old philosophies in astounding constructions. Interviews with, and works by, Japanese architects Tadad Ando, Kisho Kurokawa, Toyo Ito and Kazuo Shinohara and Scandinavian architects Sverre Fehn, Kristian Gullichsen and Juhani Pallasmaa.

2003

Deliverance

Deliverance 2021

6.00

Two monks on a mission choose very different paths

2021

Thousand Cranes

Thousand Cranes 1969

8.30

The entangled relations between the son of a seductive tea-ceremony teacher and the women in his father's life. Based on the novel by Kawabata Yasunari.

1969

Fast Break

Fast Break 1978

10.00

Evoking a cinema verite feel not found in most sports documentaries, Fast Break examines the 1977 Portland Trailblazers basketball team in a surprisingly personal and compelling fashion. Inter-cutting excerpts from the 1977 playoff / championship season, the film steps outside of the basketball court, and into the everyday lives of the Trailblazers, as well as their coach Jack Ramsey. Whether it’s biking the Oregon coast with star center Bill Walton, hosting a kids basketball camp with Dave Twardzik, or joking with Maurice Lucas at the pool – Fast Break lets the players speak for themselves: about basketball, life and playing in Portland. Fast Break, a film documentary about Bill Walton and the Portland Trail Blazers winning the 1976-77 NBA title and the aftermath of their accomplishment, is the greatest movie I have ever seen on the subject of professional team sports, basketball as a metaphor for life, and the perfect practice of Zen Buddhism in American society.

1978

Kensho at the Bedfellow

Kensho at the Bedfellow 2017

10.00

Reeling from his sister’s death, a NYC playwright searches for fulfillment in a sex-and-drug filled odyssey. When he’s reunited with a childhood love, their shared journey of self-discovery catalyzes a profound, existential awakening.

2017

Max Gimblett: Original Mind

Max Gimblett: Original Mind 2017

1

Max Gimblett: Original Mind documents the life and process of eccentric, creative genius Max Gimblett. One of New Zealand’s most successful and internationally prominent living painters, Gimblett has been working in America since 1962. The filmmakers spent a week in Gimblett’s Soho loft where he and his devoted studio assistants generously revealed the techniques and philosophy behind his beautiful art.

2017

Zen Comedy

Zen Comedy 2023

10.00

Experience uproarious comedy with five stand-up stars at Arizona's Reiki Academy, blending laughter and serenity for an unforgettable show.

2023

Koan of Spring

Koan of Spring 2013

5.50

Vietnam 1791. Old Truong, the Emperor’s Master of Arms, feels the end of his life coming. But he has yet to find a successor. The country has to be prepared for war and the Emperor is furiously impatient. He gives Master Truong two weeks to find the one. Truong sets off to visit Master Wing, a famous former General who is now living as a simple fisherman on the shores of a lake. He has three children. Truong wants to test the two sons as his potential successors and asks to see a demonstration of their fighting skill.

2013

Zen for Nothing

Zen for Nothing 2016

6.50

Hidden in the wooded mountains on the west coast of Japan lies the small Zen monastery Antaiji. A young woman sets off to immerse herself through autumn, winter and spring in the adventures of monastic life. The young woman is Sabine Timoteo from Switzerland. The abbot of the monastery is Muho Noelke, born in Berlin. An interplay between the philosophy of the Japanese Zen master Kodo Sawaki and the surprises brought forth by everyday life.

2016

How to Cook Your Life

How to Cook Your Life 2007

5.60

A Zen priest in San Francisco and cookbook author use Zen Buddhism and cooking to relate to everyday life.

2007

Peace Is Every Step

Peace Is Every Step 2005

1

The influential life and powerful messages of Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh are explored in this biographical documentary. For more than 50 years, this amazing social activist has preached self-awareness and compassion for all living beings. Follow him as he travels through France and the United States—including a stop at the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C.—spreading peace by teaching mindfulness and forgiveness.

2005

A Cloud Never Dies

A Cloud Never Dies 2022

1

Weaving together original film and photographic archives, A CLOUD NEVER DIES tells the story of a humble young Vietnamese monk and poet whose wisdom and compassion were forged in the suffering of war. In the face of violence, fear, and discrimination, Thích Nhất Hạnh’s courageous path of engaged action reveals how insight, community, and a deep aspiration to serve the world can offer hope, peace, and a way forward for millions.

2022

Life

Life 2007

7.67

Complex, offbeat Detective Charlie Crews returns to the force after serving time in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Crews’ new lease on life has provided him with a Zen-like outlook, peace of mind and no need for vengeance, an attitude which can be challenging to maintain when someone he cares about is threatened — or when he is investigating the mystery surrounding the murder he was falsely accused of.

2007

Zenimation

Zenimation 2020

7.40

Unplug, relax, and refresh your senses for a moment of mindfulness with Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Zenimation - an animated soundscape experience.

2020

The Essential Lectures of Alan Watts

The Essential Lectures of Alan Watts 1972

10.00

The Essential Lectures of Alan Watts video series was recorded in 1971 above Muir Woods, California, and in 1972 aboard the ferryboat the SS Vallejo in Sausalito. Produced by his son Mark and directed by long-time archivist Henry Jacobs, the series explores core philosophical themes that spawned over Watts' career.

1972