2022-23 | Dialogues in Mystical Culture: Mysticism in Action in Modern Western Society

'2022-23 | Dialogues in Mystical Culture: Mysticism in Action in Modern Western Society '

TORCH Knowledge Exchange Innovation Fund Awardee
Dr Louise Nelstrop   |   Faculty of Theology and Religion |   University of Oxford

Partner Organisations
Kris Krainock   |   Kris Krainock Productions

Paul Herrmann & Thibaut Verley  |  SMART

Ella Muscroft  |  Loud Voices Silent Streets

‘Dialogues in Mystical Culture’ was a Knowledge-Exchange Project that successfully created internationally-recognised Oxford-European short documentary, Complete Surrender, winner of best short documentary at international film festivals, with film industry recognition (IMDb), now used as teaching resources in UK and US universities. Working with Internationally-acclaimed North American filmmaker, Kris Krainock, this new project explores mysticism’s public impact in Europe and America.
The proposed film project focuses on four contemporary mystics: Howard Thurman, Jarina Lee, Dorothy Soelle, and Simone Weil. Each is the subject of current artistic and practitioner engagement. The film will
bring these into dialogue with academic expertise. Alongside traditional filming techniques, innovative internet filming methods will be used to allow global input within budget. Images and sounds from contemporary artistic innovations will be interlaced with dialogues from academics and practitioners that hone in on the central characters. The scene set, the film will turn to cinematographic evocation of mysticism and its impact on society, including topics of identity and race. The film will act as the platform for a public collaborative online workshop on mysticism in action, stimulating ongoing knowledge exchange engagements.