Spiritual Films
Visual interpretations of meditation courses, symbols, and spiritual ideas that have no physical form. And from this August, also live filming alongside teachers — as a participant in the practice, not just a crew.
How I work
Most of the spiritual work I have made so far has not used a camera at all.
The course intros I make for Tranquil Retreats are visual interpretations of spiritual concepts that have no physical form — Ganesha, Medicine Buddha, the Three Pure Ones, the Fire Horse. There is nothing to point a camera at. So I spend time with the concept first, through meditation and inner attention, and then build the visual from there, using AI as the rendering tool. This is where I developed my method.
From this August, I also begin filming live alongside teachers. I will be at a Tranquil Retreats QiGong course as a participant first, with the camera second. I do not detach myself from the practice. I take part in it, and that perspective shows up in what I make.
Principles
This work needs care before it needs equipment. Three things I do not let go of.
Before I produce a single image — or bring a camera to a course — I spend time with what the work actually is. For visual interpretations, that means meditating on the concept until I can sense its shape. For live filming, it means taking part in the practice first, so the camera does not intrude on something I have not tried to feel.
When I bring a camera to a retreat or course, I am there as a participant first. I do the practice alongside the others, and the filming fits around the work rather than the other way around. Consent for everyone involved is the baseline — not a principle worth listing.
I am not interested in making spirituality look dramatic for its own sake. The image is in service of the practice, not the other way around. The work I am proudest of is the work that looks like what is actually happening — not a heightened version of it.
Recent work
A course intro for Tranquil Retreats. A visual interpretation of one of the foundational concepts in QiGong, built entirely from inside the practice.
