Kang Rinposhe (Paths of the Soul). 2015. China. Directed by Zhang Yang. In Tibetan; English subtitles. 115 min.
A group of Tibetans of all ages and from different families join together to make a pilgrimage from their home village to Lhasa, a treacherous 2,000-kilometer trek at high elevations. Each makes the spiritual journey for their own reasons—one man, now elderly, may never have another opportunity, and a younger man seeks to change his fate. Over the course of an arduous journey that requires prostration after every few steps, they encounter many obstacles—a broken tractor, snow, exhaustion, sickness, a birth—but the ordeal never breaks their communal resolve. This unique blend of fiction and documentary was shot with nonprofessional actors over the course of a year.