Animal in Ascension
2023 · 5m · USA
Directed by Ian Clark
Genres: documentary, essay film, experimental
Tones: contemplative, surreal, whimsical
A psychedelic documentary follows a young man in Miami who shares his reflections on DMT, human perception, and the texture of daily life, wrapped in kaleidoscopic visuals and acute sound design.
Picked by Felix
The scouts
Documentary about a guy talking about DMT in Miami that becomes a genuine meditation on perception. The film dares you to call it nothing.
At five minutes, a Miami DMT-trip documentary with kaleidoscopic VFX layered on day-to-day observation — Clark using formal disruption to bracket Julian's reflections rather than illustrate them is the right choice for psychedelic nonfiction.
DMT trip report turned Miami day-in-the-life with kaleidoscopic VFX threading through the verbal anecdotes — five-and-a-half minutes is the right runtime for that kind of psychedelic essay to stay sharp. Acute sound design is the giveaway.
Reviews
Clark's apt use of kaleidoscopic images and an acute sound design make these anecdotal experiences all the more comprehensible.