IN THE CANNES

Filmmaker Alex Mar at The Norwood Club, NYC

IN THE CANNES
On the eve of the opening of the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, I caught up with New York filmmaker, Alex Mar, who is currently in post production on her debut feature documentary American Mystic, a project she produced and directed for empire 8 productions, a film company she co-founded with producer Nicholas Shumaker. Edited by Andy Grieve of Standard Operating fame, American Mystic follows three unconventional twentysomethings, each a member of a fringe religious community who have separated themselves from mainstream America to become immersed in spirituality. Mar’s subjects lay down roots in quintessentially American landscapes – the former revivalist district of upstate New York, old mining country in the mountains of northern California, and the badlands of South Dakota. From lush green hilltops to bleak flat terrain, the diverse landscapes artfully play host to illuminating narratives that call into question America’s dysfunctional relationship with religion where too often public debate on the subject is quashed by extreme disdain or near heretical obsession with the idea of faith.

In addition to American Mystic, Mar will also shop around a new project, a psychological thriller set in the art world. As a former reporter and journalist for titles such as ArtForum, Frieze, Art Review and as culture and arts reporter for National Public Radio, Mar surely has loads to draw on to rattle the art scene.

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