An Original Short Documentary Brings Life to the Sant Bani School in Exciting New Ways

The long-awaited creation of a film about the Sant Bani School and its community is finally a reality. “The Story of the Sant Bani School,” a short documentary by filmmakers Donald Macken (long-time friend of the school) and Kai de Mello-Folsom (SBS Class of ‘07), was officially released in a DVD Premiere & Open-House Event on March 24th, 2007.

“..The DVD of the Sant Bani School made me weep. I felt such a sense of loss for my own childhood. It reminded me of the wholesale abandonment of our children in this world, and especially in much of this coutry. Maybe for the first time I understand what a school could be..”

Paul Hawken -Author; Blessed Unrest, The Ecology of Commerce

“..Watching the DVD is indeed an experience; you are struck by it – positive and stirring. The meta-theme that clearly comes through is the core of Sant Bani: the spiritual element that encompasses and embraces the entire experience. The words of Sant Kirpal Singh that mark the beginning and the end of this DVD are little crystalline beads that are the perfect bookends to hold who you are, what you are doing, and where you are going. Sant Bani is not just a singular place, it is a spirit – an ethos – a way of looking at the world that is not only good for the spirit of a child, but for the soul of an adult.”

William New – MD, PhD – Professor emeritus, Stanford; Trustee, NAIS (National Association of Independent Schools)

“The best education is that which teaches us that the end of knowledge is service. " —Sant Kirpal Singh

“..The Sant Bani School DVD is excellent! It presents great educational ideas as well as a strong sense of Sant Bani as it carries the viewer along. Since it is as much about an educational philosophy as it is about a particular school, a wide audience should see it. This is by far the best of the many school films I have seen.”

William Bennett – Director of the Commission on Independent Schools, NEASC (New England Association of Schools and Colleges)

If you would like to request a free high resolution copy of the DVD, please email Megan Farkas or contact us at:

The Sant Bani School
19 Ashram Rd.
Sanbornton, NH 03269
603.934.4240

The Production Team

Kai de Mello-Folsom graduated in 2007 from Sant Bani School, which he attended since Kindergarten. He is an aspiring Filmmaker, Director, Writer and Actor, and is pursuing his passions at Chapman University in California. He lives in Sanbornton, New Hampshire with his family, including his two younger brothers who attend the school.

Kent Bicknell is the principal and founder of the Sant Bani School. A native of New Hampshire, he studied extensively in India with and received initiation from the late master Kirpal Singh. In 1992 he published Rainbow on My Heart, an account of the early years with the teacher, Sant Ajaib Singh. Dr. Bicknell made national news and the New York Times bestseller list in 1995, when he edited a previously unpublished manuscript of Louisa May Alcott, A Long Fatal Love Chase. He currently lives in Sanbornton with his wife, Karen.

Quotes from the DVD

“Look at our setting. How could you have a setting that is more spiritual and wonderful than where we are? Right in the midst of nature, where you feel that connection. The essence of One. You are One, with everybody that is here and everything that is around us.” ~ Karen Ulmer Dorsh – French Teacher, The Sant Bani School

“I think [the school is] the vision of everybody who is involved with it, that contributes to it, and makes it happen. And I think that’s one of the things that will help to keep it going in the future — that this is a shared vision that everyone has and contributes to, and really has a stake in…” ~ Jonathan Powell, Dean of Studies & Teacher, The Sant Bani School

Editor’s Note

For most schools a project of this nature is put together by a professional production company — an approach that is both expensive and demanding. As you will see in the following account, our video was created by taking a road less traveled. The results, while professional in appearance, were created by a small group of volunteers who brought a wonderful heartfelt quality to the project. Kent has shown early versions to several friends and professionals who were profoundly touched; from their responses it would appear that some bit of the Sant Bani essence has indeed been caught on tape…

On Filming the Atmosphere

~ April ’06 by DONALD MACKEN

What is it that makes a tour of the Sant Bani School memorable? Strolling through the park-like setting, peeking into classrooms, talking with an enthusiastic faculty member along the way, observing some unusual learning activity in progress—these are all part of it. But there’s something else, another dimension. That dimension is reflected in the aliveness in students’ faces and the feeling of family that hangs in the air. Often at the conclusion of a tour, visitors take a moment to reflect. There is a word that frequently comes up. That word is “atmosphere.”

Kai Editing at DigitalCore

When the Board of Directors started to explore the idea of a DVD, it was inevitable that the objective would include the word “atmosphere.” “Would it be possible for a short documentary to capture the atmosphere and convey the sense of respect and trust that permeates the School?”
Earlier in the year during a visit to my home in California, Kent and I discussed how such a project might materialize. Before long I volunteered to fly east to film the graduation and conduct a few interviews. A quality video camera and a generous supply of enthusiasm were my qualifications.

The camera was sent in advance. Our project needed classroom scenes and we decided a student should take that footage. Kai deMello-Folsom, a very capable Sant Bani junior, volunteered. He was pretty much on his own, but Kai didn’t need much direction.

After I arrived at Sant Bani, Kent, Kai and I started planning the next five days. Thoughts of capturing “atmosphere” receded as the details of our to-do list pressed in. The interviews were to be with faculty, students, alumni, and parents. Kai was responsible for the camera and sound. My job was simply to sit next to the camera and have a casual conversation with whomever Kent had scheduled. I knew very few of these people and never before had I done anything like this. Forging ahead was my only option. What I experienced was something I had not anticipated. The answers were infused with commitment, love, and enthusiasm; they came pouring out. These people were addressing me with spontaneously eloquent and deeply heartfelt responses. Often after an interview I’d ask Kai, “Did you get all that? You got that, right?” A little smile and a nod would assure me everything was okay on the technical front. Later I’d tell Kent, “Oh you won’t believe some of the stuff we got today.” Next day, same thing.

When we first started I had a yellow pad with an outline of how I felt things should be structured. It didn’t take many sessions to realize that imposing a structure was not going to work. These were fascinating, delightful people and I enjoyed being with them immensely. As a result our heart-to-heart discussions would weave in many different directions. What we ended up with was so much better than what we had planned. We were in awe of the process as we realized what was happening. Somehow the heart and soul of the School was revealing itself during these interviews. And it was all on film.
After graduation, as I returned home to California, I reflected on how amazing the experience had been. Kent summarized it in e-mail. “I believe that this whole event has been a learning process for both you and the school… It was no accident that you came and managed to capture so much, and now I am suggesting that you approach those 24 tapes with a mystic reverence. My guess is that they are poems, not narratives, as you have caught people’s hearts on film, and thus the heart of the Sant Bani School Community.”

In late August, Kent and Kai flew to San Francisco. We set up camp at the home of John Pollard (a member of the Sant Bani Board and former Sant Bani student). Our plan was to edit the film in his dining room. Fortunately, that plan changed. My son Joseph works at DigitalCore, where they have professional editing suites. When Brent, the owner, learned of our project, he generously donated five days of studio time. This made all the difference. Our homegrown project had suddenly been catapulted into a new level of professionalism.

Most documentaries are pretty tightly scripted. But for us, because of time pressures and limited resources, everything was being created on the fly. Much of the footage was viewed for the first time in San Francisco; each time we looked at a new tape it was a treasure hunt. Suddenly we would find wonderful little moments and start jumping around, saying, “We have to use all of this!”

Kai’s classroom shots were something that no professional production company could have captured. The presence of a stranger with a big camera would have been awkward and imposing. But Kai was among friends. In each situation, life went on. By the time he was done he had a diverse assortment of clips that reflected real-life experiences in the school

Another contribution was made by Richard Danahy, Sant Bani’s High School physics teacher, who assembled a collection of digital photographs taken by various photographers over the years. Thirty are in the movie and they effectively broaden the scope.

When we first showed up at DigitalCore we brought 17 hours of footage. From the beginning the assignment was to make a 20-minute movie. How do you get from 17 hours to 20 minutes? The answer is, one painful decision at a time. We had much more material than we could possibly use. There was an abundance of interview clips that we loved, so we’d try to fit them all in. We would assemble a series of clips and then play it back, and there would be a sense that something was wrong. “That third clip, maybe we don’t need it.” More than once Kent would object, “But that’s such a great shot!” Finally someone would say, “Yeah, that’s better.” Then we’d move on, having let go of another pearl.

Don Macken and Kai deMello-Folsom

By the third day a big problem loomed that needed to be addressed. We wanted an off-screen narrator voice at the beginning and during chapter transitions. It became obvious that this was not going to happen. There was no script, we didn’t have a narrator, and we were running out of time. Then suddenly, a solution bubbled to the surface. “What if every voice we hear is taken from the interview footage? What would it be like without any scripted lines?” We decided to try it. We took an audio excerpt from French teacher Karen Ulmer Dorsch’s interview and then we assembled a montage of images that reflected what she was saying. It worked like magic and became the opening sequence for the entire project.

In the early days of editing we realized that we could not predict the outcome and simply had to let the process unfold. The yellow pad with the structured outline was cast aside. We found the material itself was defining the themes and shaping the structure. A simple story was coming to life. It had a wonderful flow—just like a walk around the campus. We peeked into classes, observing students, and chatting with teachers. All the experiences, they were all there—including that ethereal element called atmosphere.

Our finished DVD will help the School reach out beyond the local community and share its vision with kindred spirits in far away places. Many of these will be individuals and organizations looking for ways to move education in a new direction. Others, who share the School’s values, may be moved to make donations. There are many ways to join the school’s Circle of Friends as we share with others and continue toward the new education.