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Biographies:

 

Producer-Director Khashyar Darvich with "Dalai Lama Renaissance" narrator Harrison Ford

 

The Biographies of the characters featured in the film can be found HERE.

Harrison Ford (Narrator)

Actor Harrison Ford is the narrator for "Dalai Lama Renaissance." The Internet Movie Database (IMBD.com) writes that "He is clearly a well-established Hollywood Superstar." Harrison Ford's movies are the second-highest grossing films of any actor in history. World-wide, his films have a total box office gross of about $5.65 billion, with U.S. box office grosses totaling approximately $3.18 billion. He has starred in the blockbusters "Star Wars" films, "Indiana Jones" movies, "American Graffiti," "Blade Runner," and many others. In 1985, Harrison Ford received Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for his acting role in "Witness." And in 1993, he received a second Golden Globe acting nomination for "The Fugitive." He is starring in "Indian Jones 4," which is directed by Steven Spielberg and will be released in May 2008.

 

Khashyar Darvich (Producer, Director, Editor)

Producer-Director Khashyar Darvich has won numerous awards for his documentaries and other projects that have been broadcast nationally, including on the History Channel, CBS, NBC and PBS. Khashyar strives and is committed to producing positive projects that are both artistically satisfying and that have a positive impact on audiences. In 2000, he founded and is President of a 501(c)(3) nonprofit foundation, "The Wakan Foundation for the Arts," which has the mission of "serving and uplifting humanity through the arts." Khashyar was committed to producing "Dalai Lama Renaissance" because of the unique transformation that occurred during that special event, and as it became obvious that what was captured by the cameras had all the elements of an extraordinary film. Some of Khashyar's previous work includes: the History Channel and PBS award-winning documentary "Black Hawk Waltz: Tales of a Rocky Mountain Town," about an eccentric Colorado mountain town, a true-life "Northern Exposure;" The "Coach Parks" documentary, about a high school coach who devotes himself to helping the poor, and who many professional athletes like Joe Montana come to for physical, personal and spiritual conditioning; "Saving the Redwood Forests," a television PSA about saving the Redwood Forests that has won 15 awards to date; and other projects. After "Dalai Lama Renaissance," he will be producing a documentary about "ordinary individuals doing extraordinary things for peace," which will feature the remarkable stories of several prominent and inspiring people who are doing their part to create positive change.

 

David Mueller (Co-Producer)

David Mueller is a screenwriter and director. He is currently working as a screenwriter and has optioned his latest feature screenplay. David has written, directed and produced documentaries and commercials and also directed second unit action sequences on Fox's "New York Undercover" and CBS"s "The Wright Verdicts". He has been a member of the Director's Guild of America since 1995. David's documentary work on Australian cowboys is on permanent exhibit in the National Museum of Australia in Canberra. From 2000 through 2002 he was a Senior Webcast Producer for Akamai Technologies where he produced live webcasts in Monte Carlo, Bangkok, New York, Boston and San Francisco. David joined Wakan Films in 1998. He directed the documentary short, "Coach Parks" and the PSA "Saving the Redwoods" both of which he co-produced with Khashyar Darvich for Wakan Films. David also worked with Khashyar on Dateline NBC segments in India including a one-hour special on Tibetan Medicine with the Dalai Lama. Prior to his work in film and television David taught high school and mentored at-risk youth in inner-city Brooklyn, New York. David co-founded two international rural development projects, Project Nepal and World Service. After graduating from UCLA, he worked for two years training horses and mustering cattle in the Australian outback. He is a surfer, mountaineer and horseman whose passion is to write stories and make films that affect positive change in the world.

 

 

Master sitarist Roop Verma composed original music for "Dalai Lama Renaissance."

 


Roop Verma (Contributing Music)

Roop Verma is a world-class sitarist, composer and teacher of Indian music and philosophy. His intensive musical training of over 25 years took place under the direction of some of the most famous masters of our time: Sri J. P. Kaushik, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan and Pandit Ravi Shankar. He has performed extensively throughout North America, Europe and India. His philosophical training has been guided by such masters as His Holiness The Nirankari Baba, Swami Shyam of the Himalayas and Swami Brahmananda Saraswati, who awarded him the title of "Acharya", or master teacher, in 1988. His unique combination of spiritual philosophy and spiritual expression of music is apparent and palpable in his musical performances.

 

Tashi Dhondup Sharzur (Contributing Music)

Techung is a prominent Tibetan singer/songwriter living in exile in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is best known for his performances of traditional Tibetan music, dance, and opera under the name Tashi Dhondup Sharzur. He uses his childhood nickname, Techung, when performing as a solo artist. Whether performing in traditional or contemporary styles, Techung's dual goals are to revive Tibetan music in the Tibetan community and to expose the rich performing cultural tradition of his homeland to the world community. In addition to being looked up to as one of the key keepers of traditional Tibetan musical traditions, Techung is also respected for the original solo and collaborative music he creates by drawing on both his own heritage and his familiarity with other world music traditions. Techung's voice and music have been featured on the soundtracks of the IMAX film "Everest," the feature film "Windhorse," the documentary films "Stranger in My Native Land," "Tibet's Stolen Child," and "Three Days for Tibet" (about a concert in Dharamsala with Joan Osborne, Zakir Hussein and other musicians). His music was also featured on PSA's for the Milarepa Fund (promoting the 1999 Tibetan Freedom Concert), Students' For a Free Tibet's DVD demo "Tibet Will Be Free", and Amnesty International (soliciting support for the human rights case of Ven. Palden Gyatso), as well as on an audio book by Diki Tsering titled "Dalai Lama, My Son." His music is currently being used in the documentary film "What Remains of Us" which was selected at 2004 CANNES film festival. His music will be used in the upcoming Tibetan feature film "Dreaming of Lhasa" (working title: Poison Charm) directed by Tenzing Sonam and Ritu Sarin.

 

Michel Tyabji (Music Director)

Michel has been producing music for Limitless Sky Records, an independent record label focused on music from Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Gunea, India and Iran. In 2003 three of the albums on that label made the list of Grammy nominations. African musician Ndala Kasheba"s album, "Yellow Card," was named best of 2003 by the New York Times, and Robert Christagou (probably the most noted of music critics) said "Yellow Card" is what "guitar heaven is made of." Michel is always involved in a diverse range of productions and will be acting as music and post audio supervisor for the "Dalai Lama Renaissance".

 

Henry Reid (Music Director, Composer)

Member of the group Manheim Steamroller, which had a number of platinum-selling albums, as well as a Grammy Award, Henry Reid studied under composer Henri Mancini, and played sessions with the group "The Carpenters" in the early years of the band. As a Keyboardist, through the years Henry has also acted as Music Director for live performances for Phillip Earl Johnson, and Buddy Big Mountain, and is presently working on music CDs for both performers. Henry has submitted performance arrangements, suggestions for album content (Christmas Albums), and local orchestral performance with Mannheim Steamroller. Recently, he completed post production sound editing and sweetening for the Ethnomusicology Department at UCLA on the Sidi Goma radio spots. He is also a Composer/Arranger for Animation projects at UCLA Department of Animation. Also Henry is currently making arrangements to tour Europe, Eastern Europe, and India, with Native American Grammy nominated and winners Joanne Shenandoah, Mary Youngblood, and The Buddy Big Mountain show, and will be Composer, Arranger and Music Director for the project.

 

Heyraneh / Fariba Rofougaran (Contributing Music)

Heyraneh's music is the expression of her personal prayers to the Beloved. Her album "Prayer on Tanbour" with Jamie Papish and Christo Pellani is inspired by the mysterious sacred and ancient maqams of the Kurdish Yarsan people woven with mystic Persian poetry. Heyraneh's music is part of her life and work as a holistic life coach and a yoga teacher.

 

The Yoginis (Contributing Music)

Under the leadership of Terry Mcaw and Vishal Nagar , the Yogins is an ensemble based in India and the US.  Their goal is to create an authentic blend  of Indian and American music  - no keyboards, no studio trickery - just a love for heartfelt, tried, true and honest music.

 

Lama Wangdu Rinpoche (Music Director, Composer)

Lama Wangdu Rimpoche is the amongst the last surviving linage holders of Phowa and Kusuli Chod.  Within his person resides the power and wisdom of this timeless knowledge.  The practice utilizes music as a vehicle to communicate with the universe and all its energies.  His drum, bells and thigh bone trumpet resonante perfectly with booming his voice.  Together they cut through all confusion and distraction.  He is truly a divine master.

 

 

The "Dalai Lama Renaissance" Wakan Films team after the narration recording with actor Harrison Ford. (STANDING, from right to left: Co-Producer David Mueller, Producer-Director Khashyar Darvich, Associate-Producer Ferris M. Smith; SITTING: Music Supervisor Michel Tyabji.)




Eric Babinec - Colortime Pictures (Colorist & Online Editor)

Eric Babinec has lent his talents of color correction and online editing to hundreds of network and cable television programs and film, and performed the color grading, title design, and final HD online edit for "Dalai Lama Renaissance."

 

 

 

 

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