On the wall of a building in South Philadelphia, mosaics chronicle the lives of the Zagar family. The film and the exhibition together provide a look into Zagar’s colorful and spontaneous spirit. Directed by Jeremiah Zagar. Over the past four decades, artist Isaiah Zagar has covered more than 50,000 square feet of Philadelphia with stunning mosaic murals. In a Dream is a documentary film by Jeremiah Zagar that premiered on March 9, 2008 at the South by Southwest film festival. “In a Dream,” … Isaiah is famous for his complex, highly detailed mosaics, which cover 50,000 square feet (4,600 m 2) of South Philly with elaborate designs made from tiles and mirror pieces. He is notable for his murals, primarily in or around Philadelphia's South Street. Over the past four decades, artist Isaiah Zagar has covered more than 50,000 square feet of Philadelphia with stunning mosaic murals. Isaiah Zagar (born 1939) is an American mosaic artist based in Philadelphia. Documentary 2009 1 hr 20 min. Filmmaker Jeremiah Zagar has such a situation, as the son of Philadelphia mural artist Isaiah Zagar. I remember feeling the weight of this not just because of how he shares his experience as a poetic metaphor but because, he tells the filmmaker, he wants to understand the past. Its broadcast premiere was August 19, 2009 on HBO. In A Dream is a documentary feature film that chronicles his work and his tumultuous relationship with his wife, Julia. - Mike S. Ryan, Hammer To Nail, Learn how and when to remove this template message, San Francisco International Documentary Festival, Philadelphia Inquirer Feature, Steven Rea, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=In_a_Dream_(film)&oldid=980155838, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 24 September 2020, at 22:49. A short documentary about the artists’ life will also accompany this exhibition, which focuses on the beginning of his mosaic career, the development of his artistic process, and the conception of Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens. Would you like to receive event invitations, news, and updates from the International Documentary Association? Documentary. Even before arriving at the Magic Gardens, you will come across other walls in the neighborhood decorated with Isaiah Zagar’s signature mosaic murals. What Jeremiah does with his familial access is humbling. "In A Dream" is on sale September 29, 2009 and is rated NR. The story centers around Philadelphia-based artist Isaiah Zagar and his relationship with his family over the years. It follows the Zagars as their marriage implodes and a harrowing new chapter in their life unfolds. Production and Post-Production Grants Application Guidelines, 'MLK/FBI' Explores the Complexities of the Civil Rights Icon, Essential Doc Reads: Week of January 11, 2021, IDA Truth to Power Award: A Conversation with Rappler Reporters, Essential Doc Reads: Week of January 3, 2021, Every Picture Tells a Story: Jeremiah Zagar Revisits 'The Trials of Pamela Smart', The Feedback: Bing Liu's 'Minding the Gap', Emerging Documentary Filmmaker Award: Bing Liu. The film was shot between 2001 and 2008 and utilizes a variety of film and video formats – 8 mm, 16 mm and 35 mm as well as Hi-Def and Digital Video. "In the vibrant, bohemian neighborhood of South Philadelphia, 50,000-square feet of concrete are covered with tile and mirror—mosaics that were created by Isaiah Zagar, an eccentric, tormented artist. "In the vibrant, bohemian neighborhood of South Philadelphia, 50,000-square feet of concrete are covered with tile and mirrors—mosaics that were created by Isaiah Zagar, an eccentric, tormented artist. We are reminded that this is a father telling his son something deeply private on camera. One can watch a film and sometimes feel that the filmmaker is acting out on their grief, anger, resentment and pain. Is he insane, or could the project teach us something? During the low point of the story, Isaiah tells his son that he’s caught a lot on his camera, but it’s okay. Jeremiah Zagar's In a Dream took home the Emerging Visions Audience Award. For Isaiah, Julia and Ezekiel, they open themselves up to Jeremiah because they love him and they believe that, more important than burying family secrets, there is the possibility of understanding them. Isaiah Zagar: America's Greatest Otaku. It follows the Zagars as their marriage implodes and a harrowing new chapter in their life unfolds. Over the past four decades, artist Isaiah Zagar has covered more than 50,000 square feet of Philadelphia with stunning mosaic murals. There are thirty within a few blocks of the Magic Gardens itself. Last night D and I watched “In a Dream” the documentary of Isaiah Zagar, his life and work as a mosaic artist and his relationship with his wife Julia. Though Isaiah Zagar is a devoted dad and talented artist, his inner life is as splintered as his mosaic tile creations. All Rights Reserved. Isaiah Zagar is known for his work on America's Greatest Otaku (2011), Amosaica: The Embellished Life of Isaiah Zagar (2008) and Paints on Ceiling (2008). IN A DREAM is a documentary feature film that chronicles his work and his tumultuous relationship with his wife, Julia. When Jeremiah Zagar was a film student at Emerson College in 1999, his mom, Julia, suggested he make a film about his dad, Isaiah Zagar… - Nathan Lee, The New York Times, "Where most documentarians would rest on the laurels of a great subject and riveting present-tense drama, director Jeremiah Zagar has observed too much of his father's creative logic to cheat us with artless hagiography. - Joe Neumaier, NY Daily News, "The result is a documentary that is rare in the way that it leads us deep into the emotions and turmoil of a family over the course of several years. In a Dream is a documentary about Philadelphia-based artist Isaiah Zagar that was filmed and directed by his son, Jeremiah. The first instance of conflict occurs when Isaiah discloses that he was sexually abused when he was a child. Isaiah's most famous work is Philadelphia's Magic Gardens, a museum structure on South Street. In A Dream features music by the Books, Explosions In The Sky, Efterklang, Colleen, Bibio and an original score by Kelli Scarr. Isaiah Zagar, 78, is an artist who has been living in Philadelphia with his wife Julia since 1968. Over the past four decades, artist Isaiah Zagar has covered more than 50,000 square feet of Philadelphia with stunning mosaic murals. Other times we can feel them motivated by cheekiness, adoration, wonder and love. Isaiah Zagar is an American tile mosaic artist. Over the past four decades, artist Isaiah Zagar has covered more than 50,000 square feet of Philadelphia with stunning mosaic murals. In a Dream is one of few films I’ve returned to watch again and again. In A Dream is a documentary feature film that chronicles his work and his tumultuous relationship with his wife, Julia. Starring Isaiah Zagar, Julia Zagar, Ezekiel Zagar . We feel like Isaiah is unveiling his family photos from his wallet for us. Zagar holds a BA in Painting and Graphics from the Pratt Institute of Art. Born in Philadelphia and raised in Brooklyn, Zagar received his B.F.A. That documentary, a kind of biographical mosaic created by his youngest son, Jeremiah, is titled “In a Dream” and makes its debut Wednesday on HBO2. –Isaiah Zagar. IN A DREAM follows the Zagars as their marriage implodes and a harrowing new chapter in their life unfolds. It follows the Zagars as their marriage implodes and a harrowing new chapter in their life unfolds. Zagar reveals many personal details of his life during the film, including revelations about his childhood and the existence of an adulterous relationship that threatens to tear his family apart. While Isaiah's marriage to his wife Julia has always been complicated by their vastly different personalities, it finally shatters after the admission of an affair. The fact that everybody in the family wants the same thing—to love one another and make their family whole again—makes the film itself an attempt to achieve their goal. Bing Liu is a Chicago-based filmmaker best known for directing the 2018 Oscar-nominated and Emmy-nominated documentary Minding the Gap and his work on the series America to Me. When Isaiah’s son Jeremiah comes home to document his father at the request of Jeremiah’s mother, Julia, we are introduced to Isaiah through his stunning and reflective sketches, paintings and mosaics, which are plastered on the sides of Philly buildings, spanning whole blocks. I highly recommend you to watch In a Dream. In a Dream is a documentary about Philadelphia -based artist Isaiah Zagar that was filmed and directed by his son, Jeremiah. In dreamily paced tracking shots, macro close-ups, time-lapse glimpses of Isaiah's processes, archival footage, and animation, In a Dream exhibits as much beauty and sensuality as Isaiah's work, while the unabashedly personal nature of the filmmaker-subject dynamic is as candid about familial madness as Tarnation, and captures more insight than those Friedmans did." After raising two sons - we see one, the director's brother, in the midst of drug rehab - Isaiah begins a relationship with his assistant as his astounded wife tries to figure out her increasingly idiosyncratic husband. The murals chronicle his love for his wife, Julia, and subtly hint at the darker corners of an extraordinary imagination. Isaiah Zagar. Oct 07 2009. Even in an era of 24-hour confessional TV, this look into complex emotions is gripping." Isaiah Zagar has gained recognition in various films and publications, most notably in the 2008 documentary, In A Dream, created by his son, Jeremiah Zagar. in Painting & Graphics at the Pratt Institute of Art in New York City. At this point, In a Dream might become what some people call a personal film. When Isaiah’s son Jeremiah comes home to document his father at the request of Jeremiah’s mother, Julia, we are introduced to Isaiah through his stunning and reflective sketches, paintings and mosaics, which are plastered on the sides of Philly buildings, spanning whole blocks. It’s as if the labor of constructing the film is itself an act of love. In the beautifully rendered documentary “In a Dream,” now on DVD, Jeremiah films his father’s artwork and process as if still awestruck by his childhood hero. Their journey stands as an example of how it is possible for a family to exist and grow together, across many years and problems. Isaiah Zagar, a Philadelphia artist whose vibrant mosaic murals cover the city, is losing his family and his mind. Rob Lawless begins a daunting mission to spend an hour each with 10,000 people. I thank Jeremiah’s family, but especially Jeremiah, for a film that works through so much pain, motivated by so much love. Dec 26, 2020 - Explore Christi Kalmbach's board "Isaiah Zagar" on Pinterest. He has spoken at several prominent conferences and artists’ lectures both domestically and internationally. This style shows more than the filmmaker’s admiration – within the film lurks a mystery. We soon realize what Isaiah has been creating over the years is actually his diaristic representations about the people and events most important to him throughout his life: Julia, Jeremiah and Jeremiah’s older brother, Ezekial. - Aaron Hillis, The Village Voice, "What began as a look at a father's art becomes an unintended record of an American family's dissolution in director Jeremiah Zagars lovingly made, clear-eyed documentary. It is an artist’s version of a family scrapbook. These mosaics chronicle his relationship with his wife, Julia, and make him a dominant figure in the city's arts scene. Isaiah is famous for his complex, highly detailed mosaics, which cover 50,000 square feet (4,600 m2) of South Philly with elaborate designs made from tiles and mirror pieces. AFS Documentary Tour presents In a Dream. The murals chronicle his love for his wife, Julia, and subtly hint at the darker corners of an extraordinary imagination. The power of Zagar's camera also prompts his dad to drudge up painful childhood memories and wonder where his life is headed. Philadelphia's Magic Gardens: Early life. In the vibrant, bohemian neighborhood of South Philadelphia, 50, 000-square feet of concrete are covered with tile and mirrors--mosaics that were created by Isaiah Zagar, an eccentric, tormented artist. Isn't it strange that this offbeat freaky hippie family turns out in the end to fully embody the conservative family-value ideal?" It feels so rewarding as an audience member to have documentary participants give permission to being filmed within the film itself because, beyond revealing the power dynamics at play, every instance of consent has different motivations. It was a beautifully filmed documentary by their son Jeremiah Zagar, which portrayed the forty-year love story of his parents, as well as his father’s obsession with mosaic art. © 2021 International Documentary Association. Isaiah Zagar in his Magic Gardens (2007) Born: 1939 (age 80–81) Nationality: American: Education: Pratt Institute (BA) Known for : Sculpture, Ceramics, Mosaic: Notable work. Isaiah Zagar is an award-winning mosaic mural artist whose work can be found on more than 200 public walls throughout the city of Philadelphia and around the world. We get glimpses of tough family moments: divorce, nervous breakdown, addiction. In A Dream is a documentary feature film that chronicles his work and his tumultuous relationship with his wife, Julia. His awards include an NREA Fellowship in 1979 and a Pew Charitable Trust Individual Artist Fellowship Grant in 1995. We see colorful representations of a young couple in love, and then an older couple with a child and then the children growing, all captured on wide-angle Steadicam shots that float through the hallways and rooms of their family home. Yet there are no diaristic filmmaker voiceovers, nor much time spent on self-reflection; in fact we sometimes forget that the filmmaker has any relation to the characters at all. The murals chronicle his love for his wife, Julia. It is a heart-wrenching portrait of his father Isaiah Zagar, a renowned mosaic artist, and his mother Julia as their 40-year marriage hits the rocks. Audiences can sometimes feel filmmaker motivations just like they can feel character motivations. The murals chronicle his love for his wife, Julia, and subtly hint at the darker corners of an extraordinary imagination. See more ideas about philadelphia magic gardens, isaiah, mosaic art. Available on iTunes "In the vibrant, bohemian neighborhood of South Philadelphia, 50,000-square feet of concrete are covered with tile and mirror—mosaics that were created by Isaiah Zagar, an eccentric, tormented artist. Over the past four decades, Isaiah Zagar has covered more than 50,000 square feet of Philadelphia with stunning mosaic murals. Even more elaborate and breathtaking is the artwork inside their household; it covers every inch of wall and ceiling. Don’t arrive for your visit to Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens looking for plants and flowers. The murals chronicle his love for his wife, Julia, and subtly hint at the darker corners of his extraordinary imagination. In A Dream emerged on the film festival circuit in 2008 and quickly won a variety of awards: "Bursting with vivid home movies and loving appreciations of Isaiah's artwork - frenzied drawings and monumental mosaics in tile and mirror, many of which now beautify his Philadelphia neighborhood - 'In a Dream' abounds in visual pleasure." Gardens itself motivations just like they can feel them motivated by cheekiness, adoration, wonder and love insane. 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