1. What is Already Free about?
From Kim Shelton (Director) and Sally Hinds (Producer):
1. ALREADY FREE documents the story of two ordinary people, Dorrie and Norberto, who live thousands of miles apart, yet independently discover an innovative form of Qi Gong that offers the promise of health, happiness, inner peace and freedom. The practice transforms them in dramatic and profound ways, deeply touching everyone in their lives, and inviting a deep hope for humanity, the Earth, and our entwined destiny.Â
2. Why did you make it?
From Norberto
2. To help people, to help them understand that even normal people, living in society can reach it, that we all can reach a higher level of freedom and happiness, and also wisdom and clarity, and that is all within. I hope people can feel inspired and put themselves on the path of self-realization.
From Kim Shelton (Director) and Sally Hinds (Producer):
2.and 5 combinedÂ
As Yuan Tze mentions in the film, many people are aware that humanity is at a crossroads. The way forward requires a true understanding of the problems we face. For millennia, individuals and groups have attempted to alleviate problems and reduce suffering in the world. However, the outcome of those efforts has not been long-lasting since the ‘solutions’ did not reach the root of the problems.Â
The Ren Xue system offers a way to understand and transform problems at their very root. It doesn’t promise a quick fix, but it does promise a safe and effective pathway to uplifting life. Ren Xue is a body of teachings that includes theories, practices (Yuan QiGong) and specific teachings that guide the practitioner along a path to health, harmony and wisdom. In Ren Xue, one’s own growth serves as the indispensable foundation for helping others and for transforming our world.Â
When Norberto & Dorrie awakened to a higher level of realization using Ren Xue and its tools, it seemed like an ideal opportunity to introduce Ren Xue to a wider audience. We had to be clear about our intentions for the film, as we couldn’t possibly cover the breadth and depth of the system. By including clips of some of the Qigong methods, we hoped to convey a sense of the beauty of the methods. We also hoped to give the viewer a taste of the calm and relaxed state that is essential to transforming life. [Methods can be learnedÂ
online https://renxueamericas.org/learning-center/qigong-online-learning-courses/]Â
3. In the film, the main characters each struggle with a doubt that crippled them in the past, but through dedication, a willful openness to the realities of life and complete surrender, they find a deep trust in life that reveals their true freedom. What would you say to people who do not trust life because they view it as dangerous (e.g., COVID) and/or have experienced past failures or losses (e.g., lost employment, death, failing health)
From Norberto:
3. This is a complex question that needs a long answer, however, I can continue it in a simple way. If trust is lost due to changes in life, it will always be lost and people will never be able to trust because everything changes. That is the nature of life and a Universal law that applies to everything. If people condition their trust to the expectation that life should be how they believe life should be, trust will be lost. Life does not go as we expect or desire, life and the Universe have their own set of laws that, from the smallest detail to major events are able in their entirety to uplift and help everything that is present in the Universe to evolve. It is a very complex topic and often a reality that goes beyond our understanding, however, there is a reason for things to be how they are, even if we don’t understand. We need to be humble, the Universe is not here to serve an individual beings desires, but is taking care of everyone in the wisest way. True Trust is not affected by an external condition or change…if we drop our fixed expectations…our attachments…our desires, and we enter in the state of Unconditional Trust, then we can start to become more unified with the Universe, we can open to it, and everything will become clear.
4. Can you share any personal examples of a time when you had deep trust and surrender. What was going on in your life at the time, how did you develop that level of trust and surrender, what did that look like and what happened?
From Kim Shelton (Director) and Sally Hinds (Producer):
4. For me ( Kim) I think by the end of the editing of the film I had developed more trust through the process. I did not know how to “show†the experiences of Dorrie and Norberto, which are so hard to put into words, and it was only by having patience and being present with the material did their stories come to life. My editor and I could not force anything- this is where the trust came in.Â
From Norberto
4. When I lost what I most wanted when I have done everything I could to overcome challenges that instead of having things becoming better they will just get worst when I realized my limitations when I felt deep fear and anger when I felt deeply sad and hopeless, on that moment I had no other choice than Trust and Surrender.
5. Can you talk a little bit about Ren Xue and Qigong? What are those practices and why did you incorporate them into the film?
From Norberto
5. Ren Xue is a life cultivation method that provides effective tools and theories to help people to realize their True Self, gain wisdom and realization, well-being, health, uplift their lives, and help others, at the core of Ren Xue, there is a very complete Qigong System, Yuan Gong Qigong. Yuan Gong is a Qigong System that works in different levels of life, from the Universal Qi to the central channel and centers in the body, also works on the Spiritual Heart, the Consciousness, and the state or Pure Awareness. It is a system that was special created to support the Ren Xue system.
6. Did you experience any serendipity or synchronicity when you created the film or your life journey? If so what happened?
From Kim Shelton (Director) and Sally Hinds (Producer):
6. The day I learned about Norberto’s realization experience I was at our yearly Qi Gong retreat. But that day, I was not supposed to be there. I was supposed to leave early that morning to fly to another city to represent a different film I had made. That morning I put my packed suitcase in the car and I went back into the hall for morning Qi Gong practice, which I knew I could fit in, before driving to the airport. During the practice I got a strong feeling that I should not go. I didn’t know what this was about, but IÂ listened to the intuition. I put my suitcase back in my room, and cancelled my trip. Later that day, we watched a video conversation of Norberto speaking about his realization. I knew then that I was supposed to be there, and watch this, but I did not know why. The next day I was asked to make the film which became ALREADY FREE.
7. How can we watch the film?
From Kim Shelton (Director) and Sally Hinds (Producer):
7. to watch the film go to: alreadyfreefilm.org and register for the free screening April 24 on World Tai Chi and Qigong Day.