''On a Tightrope'' (2007) is a documentary film by Petr Lom, co-produced by

Piraya Film Piraya Film is an independent production company based in Stavanger, Norway, known for making documentary films, often on international subjects. The company was founded in 1999 by filmmakers Torstein Grude and Trond Kvist with the aim of making cr ...

and Lom Films, in cooperation with the

Rafto Foundation for Human Rights The Rafto Foundation for Human Rights was established in 1986 in memory of Thorolf Rafto, a professor of economic history at the Norwegian School of Economics (NHH) and a human rights activist. The main objective of the Rafto Foundation is the promo ...

Synopsis

The film revolves around four children living in an

orphanage An orphanage is a Residential education, residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the Childcare, care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parent ...

in Xinjiang province, China. The children are

Uyghurs The Uyghurs; ; ; ; zh, s=, t=, p=Wéiwú'ěr, IPA: ( ), alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central and East Asia. The Uyghur ...

, members of China's largest

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

minority. Their dream is to become

tightrope walker Tightrope walking, also called funambulism, is the skill of walking along a thin wire or rope. It has a long tradition in various countries and is commonly associated with the circus. Other skills similar to tightrope walking include slack rope ...

s, an ancient Uyghur tradition. The children start learning to tightrope walk, but within a few months, they are judged inadequate by their coach. Now some of their dreams change: one wants to become a teacher, another a professional singer. One of them however, feels he is simply too small to be good at anything. Eventually, even the one judged most talented at tightrope walking, and the one who dreams of a place in the

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

for tightrope walking, is let go by the unscrupulous coach who seems only interested in money. One year later, a different coach comes to the orphanage. Through love and kindness, he turns the children's initial failure at tightrope walking into success. The film culminates with their performance on a

high wire Tightrope walking, also called funambulism, is the skill of walking along a thin wire or rope. It has a long tradition in various countries and is commonly associated with the circus. Other skills similar to tightrope walking include slack rope ...

– without a safety net – in front of their entire home town. Tightrope walking is in this movie a

metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide (or obscure) clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are often compared wit ...

for how the Uyghurs try to balance between their Muslim faith and living in a

communist state A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state that is administered and governed by a communist party guided by Marxism–Leninism. Marxism–Leninism was the state ideology of the Soviet Union, the Comint ...

, where they are severely restricted in practicing their religion. This is the first film to ever document Chinese policy on religion in Xinjiang.

Awards

* Won –

Warsaw International Film Festival Warsaw Film Festival ( pl, Warszawski Festiwal Filmowy, abbreviated as WFF) is an annual film festival held every October in Warsaw, Poland which previews new films of all genres, including documentaries from all around the world. The festival ha ...

2006, Watch Doc Award * Won –

Chicago International Documentary Festival The Chicago International Documentary Film Festival (CIDF) is a festival of documentary films in the United States. The film event was established in 2003 and is dedicated to the celebration and cultivation of the documentary film A documentary ...

2007, Grand Prix, Short. * Nominated –

One World Media Awards One World Media is a non-profit organisation, registered in the UK as a charitable trust. It is based in London. The charities mission is to support strong vibrant and independent media that empowers citizens, promotes justice and contributes to in ...

, London2007.

External links

* *
Production company

International distributor

Norwegian distributor

Official Website

{{Piraya Film 2007 films Documentary films about children Documentary films about Islam Documentary films about China Orphanages in China Tightrope walking 2007 documentary films Norwegian documentary films Uyghur-language films Islam in China Documentary films about orphanages

Synopsis

Awards

See also

External links