IN THE PRESENCE OF AWE: THE TRANSVANGARDE

Director: Ishmael Annobil

Running time: 105 Minutes
Format: HD / For Big Screen
Sound Version 1: 5.1 Theatrical
Sound Version 2: Stereo

In The Presence of Awe: The Transvangarde is a cutting edge documentary about the Avant Garde art movement conceived by American scientist, poet and thinker John Allen, in the 70s. The film is based on a critiqued published by the film’s director Ishmael Annobil in 2000, and it is narrated a surreal setting by an actress embodying the spirit of the Transvangarde.

The film features an insightful and electrifying interview with Transvangarde’s John Allen – he takes the audience through the events and processes leading to his discovery of a parallel world of Avant Garde artists working in all cultures, from Berber North Africa to Japan, and also his primeval experiences as a correspondent in the Vietnam War.

The film uses Ishmael Annobil’s critique of The Transvangarde 2000 exhibition as the point of departure, interpreting the works in that watershed exposition, side by side with John Allen’s mesmerising analysis, prescience, sophisticated anthropology and polemics, his mind-blowing anecdotes, ending in a boldly alluring prediction on the evolution of art. This unique storytelling approach draws the audience into a dualistic reckoning of art and the human spirit – phantasm.

CREW
Producer/Director: Ishmael Fiifi Annobil | Cinematography: William Olivier George and James Buck (second narration) | Editors: William Olivier, Francesco Caradonna, and Merethe Rosvold | Motion Graphics: Murat Kuscu | Lighting: Ori Batut | Production Management: Sharon Tang | Narrator: Farah Merani | Original Narrator: Alex Frances | Sound: Marco Iavarone