The 2nd International Chinese Medicine Cultural Festival presents "Chinese Medicine without Frontier" documentary screening tour

Young Chinese medicine practitioners explore the development footprint of Chinese medicine, overcoming fears and hardship in countries to bestow the values and culture of Chinese medicine

HONG KONG, Sept. 27, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Initiated by International Chinese Medicine Cultural Festival Co., Ltd., and co-organized by Beijing Tong Ren Tang Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., the 2^nd International Chinese Medicine Cultural Festival (previously activated in June in Beijing and Hong Kong) premieres the "Chinese Medicine without Frontier" documentary. The film will be a highlight of the opening ceremony in Hong Kong, and has been scheduled to be screened from October to December at Hong Kong Baptist University, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the Jao Tsung-I Academy and the Western Sydney University. Its showing will enable the public from all sectors to learn fascinating impressions of Chinese medicine culture through this fearless and inspiring documentary film.

Chinese medicine practitioners visit impoverished countries offering voluntary consultations, their journey transformed into an extraordinary documentary film

The documentary film "Chinese Medicine without Frontier" was directed by Zhang Zheng, Senior Director of Phoenix Satellite TV. He led his production team to follow three young Chinese medicine practitioners who share the same vision, including Dr. Au Cheuk Wing Dennis, founder of Chinese Medicine for All (Hong Kong), Dr. Shuyuan Lin (PhD. CMD.), Senior Lecturer of Zhenjiang Chinese Medical University (Mainland China), and Mr. Gabriel Li, qualified Chinese Medicine Practitioner in Australia & Ph.D. candidate of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine. The team jointly traveled to Nepal, Myanmar and the Philippines to conduct free clinics.

The documentary is about three Chinese medicine practitioners with different cultural backgrounds who overcome cultural differences whilst lacking medical equipment, as they travel through remote and backwater villages offering voluntary consultations to the needy. The project promotes the concept of Chinese medicine across different countries. In addition, the team visited those local Chinese medicine practitioners and trained acupuncturists in the local community, while also looking at development opportunities for Chinese medicine overseas. The screening tour is expected to lead the audience to explore the difficulties, dilemmas and insufficient resources faced by practitioners when Chinese medicines "Go Global". In addition to showing Chinese doctors completing hard work overseas, the movie also wishes to reflect on the difficulties, challenges and future hopes of the Chinese medicine industry.

"Chinese Medicine without Frontier" became the first documentary film in Hong Kong to be the 'Go Global' activation media release by Chinese medicine practitioners. The voluntary consultation experience of three young Chinese medicine practitioners, Dr. Au, Dr. Lin and Mr. Li, offer a re-learning experience for the development of Chinese medicine at large. The documentary film will be screened between October to December in Hong Kong and overseas. Members of the general public are welcome to visit with free admission on a first-come-first-serve basis.

Activities details are as follows:

Sowing the seeds for Chinese medicine through the tough journey of voluntary consultation -- one day, the harvest will reward

In the documentary film, Dr. Au and Dr. Lin arrived in Nepal with their entourage, and then found that the journey of voluntary consultation was not as easy as they expected. The impoverished villages were not only destroyed by an earthquake leading to poor environmental conditions, but the villagers were also opposed to acupuncture treatments. In addition, the related medical expenses have also been a heavy financial burden for many left-behind families. Furthermore, after the team leading the voluntary consultation left, they were no longer able to follow up with the patients, limiting effectiveness of the treatments.

In the face of many difficulties, the team of voluntary consultants did not give up. Instead, the team planned a long-term blueprint of Chinese medicine development, educating the villagers on the foundation of Chinese medicine and training the most highly talented of the villagers to become professional acupuncturists after gaining their trust. As a result, the villagers can cure themselves of ailments even after the voluntary team has left. In doing so, the team has not only practiced the spirit of Chinese medicine without borders, but also improved health at a local on-the-ground level by deploying Chinese medicine. 'We continue to sow the seeds for Chinese medicine in these countries, and are looking forward to the day of harvest in the near future,' said Dr. Au.

On the other hand, in Myanmar, which has been threatened by stratification war and population persecution for many years, development under such critical conditions has encountered bottlenecks. Mr. Li found that acupuncturists who had been trained by the volunteer team six years ago completely lost contact and went 'off the grid'. After the team continued searching them out under very difficult conditions, Mr. Li eventually found one of them. However, those experiences the acupuncturist suffered during the disconnect shocked everyone in the team. Did he fulfill the promises to which he committed during the training? Other questions remain; the volunteer team also cultivated talents in the Philippines and opened up clinics operated by students; so is Dr. Au achieving his goal of reaching the day of harvest? Will his dream of helping underprivileged people in several countries be achieved?

Aspiration led by childhood experience motivates young medicine practitioners to help Chinese medicine Go Global

The experience of conducting voluntary consultation has reminded Dr. Au of his childhood in which his family was very poor, meaning his family could only afford Chinese medicine when he was sick. In fact his health completely relied on Chinese medicine when he was a child. Having benefitted from traditional Chinese medicine, Dr. Au dedicated his life to giving back to society as a Chinese medicine practitioner for life.

However, many students give up their study because of a slight bias towards future developments outside of Chinese medicine as a career. Dr. Au felt regret for this and believes in "He that travels far knows much". He actively gathered Chinese medicine students from Hong Kong to tour overseas, offering voluntary consultations and cost effective Chinese medicine to help families in poor areas. This allowed a new generation of Chinese medicine practitioners to grow rapidly so as to promote Chinese medicine culture to the global market, building vitality as well as the progressive image of Chinese medicine.

Voluntary stories from afar without geographical or age boundaries

In addition to recording the meaningful journey of voluntary consultations, the production team found seasoned Chinese medicine practitioners in the three countries and interviewed them about their touching stories in serving local populations. Mr. Li found a 90-year-old Chinese medicine practitioner in Myanmar; though they are several decades apart, they can still break the boundaries of age because of the bonding of Chinese medicine. Many years ago, these old Chinese medicine practitioners committed to the mission of "breaking the boundaries of the region and bringing Chinese medicine to the world", which coincides with "Chinese Medicine without Frontier".

The 2018 International Chinese Medicine Cultural Festival started in Beijing and culminates in Hong Kong with the climax of the Cultural Festival. Eventually, it will be extended to overseas markets. The Cultural Festival shoulders the belief and mission of promoting and popularizing the culture of Chinese medicine. It disseminates and promotes the essence of Chinese medicine culture throughout the world, supports the Belt and Road Initiative, and is committed to realizing the vision of "Chinese Medicine without Frontier".