Education for Life: the documentary
Help us bring this holistic educational method to the world
Let's make the Education for Life Documentary together!
Help us fund a groundbreaking documentary showcasing a revolutionary educational method that transforms both the children who experience it and the teachers who guide them.
Founded over a century ago in India by the great Master Paramhansa Yogananda, Education for Life is a holistic approach that was later expanded by J. Donald Walters (Swami Kriyananda).
Walters authored Education for Life and launched schools, educational projects, and multilingual teacher and parent trainings.
For 50 years, this beautiful educational movement has flourished, yet few people know it exists.
Our film aims to change that. Director Francesco Garbo is documenting the powerful experiences of educators and administrators who have lived and observed incredible transformations in themselves and in the children.
Together, we are creating a concrete tool to spread a new vision of education worldwide.
Meet the director: Francesco Garbo
Francesco Garbo is an Italian filmmaker.
In 2023, he and Gianmaria Zago filmed the documentary Viananda, in which different people reflected on multiple global issues. One of the main conclusions of the film was that education is key to raising consciousness, and it was this insight that inspired him to pursue this new project on Education for Life. Viananda is available on Prime Video.
The narrative concept
The documentary Education for Life is not simply about an educational method, but a philosophy of life. It is not a film about school, but about human beings learning to live fully, consciously and joyfully.
At a time when education is often reduced to skills and results, Education for Life invites us to rediscover another direction: one that shapes not only the mind, but also the body, heart, will, intellect and spirit.
These aspects-the tools of maturity-form the thread of the film, which spans three continents and a century of history to show how education can become an inner journey.
Two narrative axes
The roots and founders
From its origins in India with Paramhansa Yogananda and J. Donald Walters (Swami Kriyananda) to contemporary figures such as Nitai Deranja and many others who have shaped this Educational System today.
Lived stories
Children, teachers and parents in Afghanistan, Italy, India, Slovenia and the United States who today embody this vision of education as human and spiritual growth.
Through faces, gestures and words, Education for Life explores the deepest question of all:
“What does it really mean to educate?”
Vision and tone
The film adopts a contemplative and human gaze, more poetic than didactic. It does not explain: it observes. It does not demonstrate: it invites us to listen. The camera moves in a state of listening, capturing life in small everyday gestures – a child discovering nature, a teacher meditating before class, a group of teenagers building a project together.
The narrative alternates between moments of visual storytelling and silence, images of nature and the interwoven voices of the protagonists. The tone is one of exploration, not celebration.
The film raises questions rather than offering answers:
- Is it possible to teach happiness?
- Can we educate for inner freedom?
- How to convey maturity in a world dominated by speed and technology?
The result is a documentary that moves between poetry, philosophy and reality, capable of speaking to both the heart and the mind.
Objectives of the project
Represent Education for Life as a global, living educational movement rooted in universal values.
Show how EFL principles take concrete form in the daily lives of schools and communities in different countries.
To create a work that inspires reflection and dialogue on a new educational paradigm centered on human beings rather than performance.
Provide avisual and emotional experience that resonates with teachers, parents, students, and anyone reflecting on the meaning of education.
Choose your donation
There is no right or wrong amount. Each donation is a sign of a conscious choice: believing that a different education is possible, and that it is worth building together. You can choose a predefined amount or customize your donation.
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By credit card
Donation by credit card can only be made to the Education for Life Institute. Being headquartered in the United States, however, it is important to know that you will not be able to deduct the donation for tax purposes.