Coming to WORLD Channel’s Global Voices series this Sunday, June 23: UNMISTAKEN CHILD
Nati Baratz’s chronicle of a Tibetan monk’s search for his master’s reincarnation had its premiere at Toronto in 2008. It went on to screen at Berlin, Haifa, Full Frame, RiverRun, IFF Boston, Flahertiana, San Francisco, Seattle, and Thessaloniki Doc, among others, picking up several awards along the way. After its broadcast, the doc will be available for a limited time on WORLD’s website.
As a young boy, Tenzin Zopa, himself a reincarnated master, left his parents to study and assume his spiritual duties at the side of his master, Geshe Lama Konchog. Decades later, after Lama Konchog passes, the devoted Zopa is tasked by the Dalai Lama to locate his beloved master’s reincarnation – but he must do so before the child and his earthly parents form too close of a bond, preventing his easy transfer to the monk’s care. Zopa sets out on what will be a four-year journey to investigate reports of unusual recently-born children in hopes of identifying Lama Konchog’s new incarnation. Baratz’s intimate camera follows the nervous young monk, revealing the fascinating tests and ceremonies used to determine if he’s found his lost master, while also creating a beautiful, at times transcendent, travelogue of Nepal. Remaining strictly observational, Baratz leaves it to the viewer to wonder about some of the thornier issues that arise around the core goal of separating a young child from his parents, and to ask questions about faith and tradition.
what (not) to doc 