Filmed over the course of several years, Crows are White begins as a quest by filmmaker Ahsen Nadeem to receive an audience with a famous Tendai Buddhist monk, whose guidance he seeks at an isolated Japanese monastery. What unfolds is something more intimate, as Nadeem wrestles with a secret he has been hiding from his Muslim parents for decades.

Despite Nadeem’s repeated attempts to meet with the revered monk, he is rebuffed. Instead, it is his developing friendship with Ryushin—a monk of much low-er ranking who loves ice cream and heavy metal—that brings Nadeem closer to his spiritual goals. Crows are White is an enthralling, humourous and occasionally awkward look at how to be true to yourself, even if it means sometimes risking those you love in the process. -lh