Angel Wagenstein: Art is a Weapon

FAIN: TW-50054-11

Arcadia Pictures Ltd (New York, NY 10014-7216)
Andrea Simon (Project Director: July 2010 to April 2014)

Development of a documentary film that explores the life and work of Angel Wagenstein, a Bulgarian filmmaker, war hero, and novelist.

Angel Wagenstein: Art is a Weapon explores the life and work of a Bulgarian filmmaker, war hero, novelist and witness to history, whose work tackles key historical moments and issues of the last century: it's a visually and intellectually provocative portrait of a brilliant, charismatic film artist largely unknown in America. His long creative life (born 1922 and still going strong) deals with topics that inspire humanities scholarship across many disciplines: Cold War culture in divided and contentious post-war Europe; the democratic revolutions of 1989 and after; and the recent re-emergence of an interest in Europe's Muslim past and future. Our documentary covers fascinating and neglected historical terrain, bringing American audiences a new understanding of a distant culture with surprising relevance to our own.