I Am (Not) A Monster

Synopsis

"To act is to begin something new" said Hannah Arendt, one of the greatest thinkers of all time. Arendt, who passed away in 1975, coined the concept of the ‘banality of evil’. This documentary attempts to explore the thinking processes and mechanisms of activism and risky thoughts, unravelling some of the reasons why Trump, Le Pen and others have captured people’s imaginations by reviving past ideologies.
Your guide in this adventurous journey is the alternative educator Nelly Ben Hayoun, who armed with puppets and dressed as Hannah Arendt, teases the greatest thinkers of our age whilst challenging them to an impossible pursuit; the search of the origins of knowledge. Featuring contributions from political activist Noam Chomsky, Pussy Riot’s Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Hannah Arendt’s students: Arjun Appadurai and Leon Botstein, nonsense-artist Novbumichi Tosa of Maywa Denki, robot maker Hiroshi Ishiguro, Japanese Living National Treasures: Bunraku puppeteer – Kanjuro Kiritake II and Noh Theatre master – Hisa Uzawa, former Lord Mayor of Sheffield Magid Magid, cyborg artist Neil Harbisson and more.
Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2019 - Documentary Competition - World premiere
http://www.iamnotamonster.world

Details

Year

2019

Type of film

Features

Running Time

98 min

Director

Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian

Producer

Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian, Monika Baran, Chloe McClellan

Executive Producer

Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian, Christopher Hird

Editor

David Potter

Director of Photography

Fiona Braillon

Principal Cast

Noam Chomsky, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Arjun Appadurai, Leon Botstein, Novbumichi Tosa, Hiroshi Ishiguro, Kanjuro Kiritake II, Hisa Uzawa, Magid Magid, Neil Harbisson, Efrem Amare, Adrienn Almásy, Roger Berkowitz, Metasebia Endalamaw, Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian

Assistant Producer

Marie Otsuka

Genre

• Documentary

Production status

Complete

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Last updated 23rd September 2019