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Smiling with the World

On September 20th 2021, a nomadic Tibetan girl, Geru Tsomao, travelled around 1,700km from Qinghai province, part of what is called the planet’s ‘third pole’ to Beijing for cleft palate and lip surgeries. At that time, no one could possibly know how this journey would change her life forever.

  • Nathan Keith Williams
    Director
    Timelapse
  • Nathan Keith Williams
    Producer
  • Erik Nilsson
    Key Cast
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short
  • Runtime:
    15 minutes 30 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 19, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    750 CNY
  • Country of Origin:
    China
  • Country of Filming:
    China
  • Language:
    Chinese, English, Tibetan
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital, H.264, MP4
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Nathan Keith Williams

I am a documentary presenter, filmmaker, animator, podcast producer, copy editor, and
sound designer. I spent 7 years in the UK working on films for national organizations, film
festivals and broadcast TV through a UK media charity. I now live in Beijing, exploring
several media projects that reflect aspects of life in China.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

This film was an incredibly opportunity to tell a very heart-warming story of compassion, charity and hope, of real-life in China that often gets overlooked and misrepresented in mainstream Western media. I am passionate about finding ways to bridge Western and Chinese narratives about what life is really like in China. Living in China and making documentaries is challenging but its worthwhile because more often that not, too much media is widely distributed without truly appreciating and understanding Chinese culture. I hope people take this film on face value and see some honest to goodness truth, and this film is full of compassion, goodwill and charity, even though, yes, members who made it work with Chinese State media.