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God on the Street
TYPE: Documentary Feature
GENRE: Documentary
STATUS: Post-Production
LOGLINE
God on the Street is an unconventional love story about how a broken heart leads to a spiritual awakening.
SYNOPSIS
After a devastating breakup, an emotionally broken woman takes a trip across the country asking strangers about their most intimate relationship – that with God. She aims to show how people from every tradition experience spirituality in everyday life, but ends up having a profound change in perspective about what love is, and how to get it.
The driving force of the narrative is seeking. Every conversation serves as a plot point, leading the fillmmaker through a spiritual lesson. Overcoming the need for approval. Control. Judging. Her guides include a criminal, cop, physicist, atheist, accountant, recovering alcoholic, circus performer and ultra-marathon runner.
Together, they lead her from a crisis of faith to gratitude for What Is. The subjects are diverse in race, age, religious background, socio-economic status, and sexual orientation. The movie includes people from many faiths – but does not discuss details of any faith. The order in which the conversations are arranged shows her spiritual progress, giving the journey deep meaning.
Deeply personal but entirely universal, God on the Street encourages the audience to create a compassionate community of their own.
ARTISTIC STATEMENT
I tried very hard not to be a filmmaker. I squashed my creative drive and spent my career promoting other people’s ideas. After 15 years of workaholism and 15 years repeating unhealthy patterns in relationships, I crashed and burned, literally. I sold everything I had. I am making this movie because I have to. God on the Street is not just about spirituality, it is filmmaking as spiritual practice.
The movie has a visual sense of contemplation, curiosity, and spontaneity. This is a version of verité—I met people in the midst of their daily lives. I had the opportunity to show, not tell, how the act of being present can be transformative.
Many documentaries are about social issues. Spirituality is a social issue. Everyone wants to know- what’s it like for other people? Well, I asked! This is the service I provide as a filmmaker. People are afraid to engage others on intimate topics. Politics and religion get in the way. God on the Street removes these outside issues and gets to the humanity of the subject. This is different from other movies about spirituality. We don’t have to go on a fancy retreat or even enter a church or mosque. Everyday life can be a spiritual experience. We have a choice to see life as beautiful, even the ugly, painful parts. This is the truth of my work; it is the heart of God on the Street.
The movie is an antidote to the global trend of fear and intolerance. It asks questions, and in turn encourages the audience to task their own questions. It breaks down preconceived notions and inspires people to talk to those they may not have otherwise. My goal is to increase compassion; this is absolutely necessary to our progress as a society. The movie reminds us that we can transcend fear of those who might have a different experience, and even love them.
KEY CREW
Lisa Jan Fogel - Director, Producer, Cinematographer
L.J. Fogel enjoys the challenge of real-world situations, the intimacy that can take place between strangers, and the adventure of not knowing what the outcome will be. Documentary is the perfect form for her. She is interested in elevating the aesthetic of the world as it is, without manipulating the environment or subject except when absolutely necessary. She is adept at relating to her subjects and easily elicits vulnerability and genuine conversation. L.J. marries her production experience with a 15-year career in digital content strategy where she produced campaigns consisting of TV, online and live event content. She naturally conceptualizes and creates her projects across platforms. L.J. graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Vassar College. She shot her first film in high school using a VHS-C. It starred a rubber chicken named Lawrence.
Marinna Guzy - Marinna Guzy, Producer, Co-Editor
Marinna is a filmmaker and sound artist. She has created visual content for the Nature Conservancy, the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, and Focal Press. Her sound art has been featured by the University of Pennsylvania, the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, GA, and the global art project Cities and Memory (Oxford, UK). She is the co-founder of Raconteur Sound, a post-production sound house located in Los Angeles. Marinna holds a BA in Environmental Studies from Vassar College, and an MFA in Sound Design from the Savannah College of Art and Design.
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