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Mystical Realism in Movies: The Numinous Experience of Meeting the Other
July 2–7, 2023
July 2–7, 2023
Francis Lu

Please note: On Wednesday September 20, online registration may be unavailable for up to 15 minutes while system maintenance is performed. If the 'Register Now' page does not load, please wait about 15 minutes and try again.

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Need a scholarship? Apply here.

Need a scholarship? Apply here.

“The beginning of awe is wonder, and the beginning of wisdom is awe.” Abraham Heschel

Rudolph Otto described the numinous–Mysterium tremendum et fascinans–as the wholly other, experienced as a breakthrough of wonder–both fearful and fascinating. Filmmakers have given us new opportunities to experience the numinous through mystical realism. Quoting Esalen co-founder Michael Murphy, Jeffrey Kripal gives us a definition of how mystical realism appears in film: “[As] an imaginative elaboration of human experiences that have actually occurred to numerous individuals… something both fundamentally subjective (mystical) but also empirical and objective (realism).”

In this third workshop at Esalen on mystical realism in movies, you will discover the numinous experience of meeting the “wholly other,” something entirely different from anything experienced in ordinary life, be it another human being, a spirit, an angel, or some form of alien or artificial intelligence. Your cinematic repertoire will include films directed by Jean Cocteau, Terrence Malick, Alfred Hitchcock, Wim Wenders, Steven Spielberg, and a film inspired by Toni Morrison. The seminar employs methods developed over 28 film seminars at Esalen (1990-2016) co-led by Francis and Brother David Steindl-Rast: mindful film viewing, contemplative reflection, and group interaction focused on the participant’s unique experience.

7.5 CE Credits for Health Professionals is available for an additional $35 fee payable to the workshop leader. Click here for details.

Dr. Lu personally recommends, but does not require, that participants use a N95 mask during the workshop sessions, which will be provided.

For further information about the seminar, please contact Francis Lu, MD, at francislumd@gmail.com

Learn more about the requirements to receive continuing education credit.

Lead photo:
Brody Q Scotland
Francis Lu

Francis Lu

Francis G. Lu, MD, is the Kim Professor in Cultural Psychiatry, Emeritus, at UC, Davis. Since 1987, he has led or co-led 37 film seminars at Esalen on positive psychological qualities and character virtues, 28 with Brother David Steindl-Rast.

Read More

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Workshop Schedule

Sunday
8:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Monday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Tuesday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Wednesday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
Thursday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Friday
10:00 am – 12:00 pm

Summer Groovers will experience Esalen in a format similar to our Self Guided Explorations workshops. Each Summer Groove week or weekend will open and close with a circle, and be filled with festive, nostalgic activities that harken back to those days of yore.

More activities can be found on our open class schedule.

See general schedule information including arrival, departure and meal times.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive, program-specific tuition. Please note that not all accommodation levels are available for every workshop and additional faculty fees may apply.

We offer scholarship funds for those with financial need. Learn more.

Please note: On Wednesday September 20, online registration may be unavailable for up to 15 minutes while system maintenance is performed. If the 'Register Now' page does not load, please wait about 15 minutes and try again.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive tuition that includes lodging, three meals per day, access to the baths, and all activities on the Summer Groove schedule.

We offer scholarship funds for those with financial need. Learn more.

Accommodations & Tuition

For this workshop, you will register and pay for accommodations and tuition in two separate steps.

First, sign up and pay tuition directly to

Second, click Book Accommodations from this page and enter the password to complete your reservation to stay at Esalen.

Prices for accommodations include your lodging, meals, open classes, and use of the baths and other facilities. View partner program accommodations pricing.

COVID Update

As of June 30, 2023 we no longer require a negative COVID test at the time of check in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

In addition to proof of vaccination, all guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective January 7, 2022 in response to the rapid spread of the new Omicron variant, all guests and faculty will provide proof of negative PCR, NAAT, or antigen test results at time of check-in. The test must be taken within 72 hours nd results must come from a laboratory or healthcare provider.Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective December 15 in accordance with new guidance from Governor Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Health, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are required to wear masks in all indoor public settings, irrespective of vaccine status, for the next four weeks (December 15, 2021 through January 15, 2022). Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective November 19, 2021, in accordance with new guidance from the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are no longer required to wear masks indoors on campus. Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Starting November 5, 2021, due to substantial levels of COVID-19 transmission in Monterey County, a mask mandate established by the Monterey County Board of Supervisors will go into effect. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests will be required to provide proof of vaccination upon arrival starting September 3, 2021. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Masks are no longer mandated indoors or outdoors, except during massage sessions. Guests are not required to provide testing or vaccination verification before arriving on campus. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

All-inclusive Pricing

“The beginning of awe is wonder, and the beginning of wisdom is awe.” Abraham Heschel

Rudolph Otto described the numinous–Mysterium tremendum et fascinans–as the wholly other, experienced as a breakthrough of wonder–both fearful and fascinating. Filmmakers have given us new opportunities to experience the numinous through mystical realism. Quoting Esalen co-founder Michael Murphy, Jeffrey Kripal gives us a definition of how mystical realism appears in film: “[As] an imaginative elaboration of human experiences that have actually occurred to numerous individuals… something both fundamentally subjective (mystical) but also empirical and objective (realism).”

In this third workshop at Esalen on mystical realism in movies, you will discover the numinous experience of meeting the “wholly other,” something entirely different from anything experienced in ordinary life, be it another human being, a spirit, an angel, or some form of alien or artificial intelligence. Your cinematic repertoire will include films directed by Jean Cocteau, Terrence Malick, Alfred Hitchcock, Wim Wenders, Steven Spielberg, and a film inspired by Toni Morrison. The seminar employs methods developed over 28 film seminars at Esalen (1990-2016) co-led by Francis and Brother David Steindl-Rast: mindful film viewing, contemplative reflection, and group interaction focused on the participant’s unique experience.

7.5 CE Credits for Health Professionals is available for an additional $35 fee payable to the workshop leader. Click here for details.

Dr. Lu personally recommends, but does not require, that participants use a N95 mask during the workshop sessions, which will be provided.

For further information about the seminar, please contact Francis Lu, MD, at francislumd@gmail.com

Learn more about the requirements to receive continuing education credit.

Lead photo:
Brody Q Scotland
Francis Lu

Francis G. Lu, MD, is the Kim Professor in Cultural Psychiatry, Emeritus, at UC, Davis. Since 1987, he has led or co-led 37 film seminars at Esalen on positive psychological qualities and character virtues, 28 with Brother David Steindl-Rast.

Read More

Workshop Schedule

Sunday
8:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Monday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Tuesday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Wednesday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
Thursday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Friday
10:00 am – 12:00 pm

Summer Groovers will experience Esalen in a format similar to our Self Guided Explorations workshops. Each Summer Groove week or weekend will open and close with a circle, and be filled with festive, nostalgic activities that harken back to those days of yore.

More activities can be found on our open class schedule.

See general schedule information including arrival, departure and meal times.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive, program-specific tuition. Please note that not all accommodation levels are available for every workshop and additional faculty fees may apply.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive tuition that includes lodging, three meals per day, access to the baths, and all activities on the Summer Groove schedule.

We offer scholarship funds for those with financial need. Learn more.

Accommodations & Tuition

For this workshop, you will register and pay for accommodations and tuition in two separate steps.

First, sign up and pay tuition directly to

Second, click Book Accommodations from this page and enter the password to complete your reservation to stay at Esalen.

Prices for accommodations include your lodging, meals, open classes, and use of the baths and other facilities. View partner program accommodations pricing.

COVID Update

As of June 30, 2023 we no longer require a negative COVID test at the time of check in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

In addition to proof of vaccination, all guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective January 7, 2022 in response to the rapid spread of the new Omicron variant, all guests and faculty will provide proof of negative PCR, NAAT, or antigen test results at time of check-in. The test must be taken within 72 hours nd results must come from a laboratory or healthcare provider.Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective December 15 in accordance with new guidance from Governor Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Health, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are required to wear masks in all indoor public settings, irrespective of vaccine status, for the next four weeks (December 15, 2021 through January 15, 2022). Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective November 19, 2021, in accordance with new guidance from the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are no longer required to wear masks indoors on campus. Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Starting November 5, 2021, due to substantial levels of COVID-19 transmission in Monterey County, a mask mandate established by the Monterey County Board of Supervisors will go into effect. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests will be required to provide proof of vaccination upon arrival starting September 3, 2021. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Masks are no longer mandated indoors or outdoors, except during massage sessions. Guests are not required to provide testing or vaccination verification before arriving on campus. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

All-inclusive Pricing

“The beginning of awe is wonder, and the beginning of wisdom is awe.” Abraham Heschel

Rudolph Otto described the numinous–Mysterium tremendum et fascinans–as the wholly other, experienced as a breakthrough of wonder–both fearful and fascinating. Filmmakers have given us new opportunities to experience the numinous through mystical realism. Quoting Esalen co-founder Michael Murphy, Jeffrey Kripal gives us a definition of how mystical realism appears in film: “[As] an imaginative elaboration of human experiences that have actually occurred to numerous individuals… something both fundamentally subjective (mystical) but also empirical and objective (realism).”

In this third workshop at Esalen on mystical realism in movies, you will discover the numinous experience of meeting the “wholly other,” something entirely different from anything experienced in ordinary life, be it another human being, a spirit, an angel, or some form of alien or artificial intelligence. Your cinematic repertoire will include films directed by Jean Cocteau, Terrence Malick, Alfred Hitchcock, Wim Wenders, Steven Spielberg, and a film inspired by Toni Morrison. The seminar employs methods developed over 28 film seminars at Esalen (1990-2016) co-led by Francis and Brother David Steindl-Rast: mindful film viewing, contemplative reflection, and group interaction focused on the participant’s unique experience.

7.5 CE Credits for Health Professionals is available for an additional $35 fee payable to the workshop leader. Click here for details.

Dr. Lu personally recommends, but does not require, that participants use a N95 mask during the workshop sessions, which will be provided.

For further information about the seminar, please contact Francis Lu, MD, at francislumd@gmail.com

Choose Your Path

Workshop Schedule

Sunday
8:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Monday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Tuesday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Wednesday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
Thursday
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
4:15 pm – 6:15 pm
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Friday
10:00 am – 12:00 pm

Summer Groovers will experience Esalen in a format similar to our Self Guided Explorations workshops. Each Summer Groove week or weekend will open and close with a circle, and be filled with festive, nostalgic activities that harken back to those days of yore.

More activities can be found on our open class schedule.

See general schedule information including arrival, departure and meal times.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive, program-specific tuition. Please note that not all accommodation levels are available for every workshop and additional faculty fees may apply.

We offer scholarship funds for those with financial need. Learn more.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive tuition that includes lodging, three meals per day, access to the baths, and all activities on the Summer Groove schedule.

We offer scholarship funds for those with financial need. Learn more.

Accommodations & Tuition

For this workshop, you will register and pay for accommodations and tuition in two separate steps.

First, sign up and pay tuition directly to

Second, click Book Accommodations from this page and enter the password to complete your reservation to stay at Esalen.

Prices for accommodations include your lodging, meals, open classes, and use of the baths and other facilities. View partner program accommodations pricing.

COVID Update

As of June 30, 2023 we no longer require a negative COVID test at the time of check in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

In addition to proof of vaccination, all guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective January 7, 2022 in response to the rapid spread of the new Omicron variant, all guests and faculty will provide proof of negative PCR, NAAT, or antigen test results at time of check-in. The test must be taken within 72 hours nd results must come from a laboratory or healthcare provider.Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective December 15 in accordance with new guidance from Governor Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Health, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are required to wear masks in all indoor public settings, irrespective of vaccine status, for the next four weeks (December 15, 2021 through January 15, 2022). Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective November 19, 2021, in accordance with new guidance from the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are no longer required to wear masks indoors on campus. Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Starting November 5, 2021, due to substantial levels of COVID-19 transmission in Monterey County, a mask mandate established by the Monterey County Board of Supervisors will go into effect. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests will be required to provide proof of vaccination upon arrival starting September 3, 2021. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Masks are no longer mandated indoors or outdoors, except during massage sessions. Guests are not required to provide testing or vaccination verification before arriving on campus. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

All-inclusive Pricing