This film is part of Rentals

I Am (Not) a Monster

In this thought-provoking and playful documentary, ebullient director Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian (Disaster Playground) takes you on a journey to find the origins of knowledge.

Documentary 2019 98 mins Not rated

Overview

Starting with the thoughts of political theorist Hannah Arendt, Ben Hayoun-Stépanian (founder of the University of the Underground) travels the world to meet a variety of people and organisations including political theorist Noam Chomsky, former Lord Mayor of Sheffield Magid Magid, Pussy Riot activist Nadya Tolokonnikova, philosophers, alternative schools and many more. She ponders on the ownership and plurality of our thoughts, and the means by which freedom of learning and innovative education can exist in contemporary times. The result is a joyful potpourri of ideas and alternative thinking, propelled by a thrilling soundtrack of Ethiopian hip hop.

Asserting that the need for change has never been more urgent, I Am (Not) a Monster is an ambitious yet accessible activist outcry: ‘knowledge is power’.