"Synchronicity reveals the meaningful connections between the subjective and objective world." - C. G. Jung

One of the fundamental aspects of Burning Man is the role of synchronicity - the ability to consciously navigate the potential field. It's no secret. In our daily lives, the world is constantly trying to get our attention, yet our conditioning and task-oriented behaviours collapse the spectrum of possibilities. Our cultural aversion to spontaneity and un-mediated experience prevents us from allowing the mystery to unfold.

Burning Man, through principles like Radical Inclusion and Immediacy, primes the participants to open their imaginations. The expanded realm of potential conjures a type of creative intelligence that can only be described as magic. Upon return from such a journey, any attempt to draw a linear thread are futile; one is met with bewildered looks - or should they be speaking with a savvy burner - a knowing smile. Such is the origin of the cliché "This one time, at Burning Man..."

As Charles Eisenstein has said about our global crises: "We need a miracle." But a miracle is not the hand of God reaching down to save us from ourselves. A miracle is allowing an intelligence to unfold that we may not yet understand. Our collective catastrophe will not be averted by hierarchal, linear actions - instead, we must surrender to our imagination as we hold space for the mystery.   

Make no mistake: synchronicity is the only chance we've got. 

I've just returned from my sixth visit to Black Rock City. The focus was shooting my new doc Amplify Her, exploring the lives of women in the EDM scene (short for 'electronic dance music').  I'm happy to offer a first glimpse at our initial teaser below.   

The flow continues.  Stay dusty, friends.

Ian MacKenzie
Victoria, BC

AMPLIFY HER - COMING IN 2015

In the summer of 2012, I was returning from an indigenous wisdom gathering in the interior of British Columbia.  I gave a ride to a new friend who proceeded to flip through my iPod until he found one particular artist: Applecat.  I couldn't remember when or how I'd downloaded one of her sets, but he hit play excitedly, and we listened.  90 minutes later, I knew I had the idea for my next feature documentary. 

Many have come to believe that the "new" story will be lead by the emerging feminine - yet too often, discussion can seem ungrounded and too philosophical. Instead, I decided to explore the real lives of various women in the electronic dance music (EDM) scene, holding the core question: what is the unique expression these female artists have to offer? 

» Watch the teaser AMPLIFY HER
 

SCOTLAND: THE NEW STORY SUMMIT

Later this month, in partnership with Sustainable Human, I've been invited to shoot at the New Story Summit at Findhorn in Scotland.  The week is an unprecedented gathering of luminaries and storytellers from all over the world.

From their website: "Our modern world faces unprecedented challenges and the increasing fragility of once robust systems - social, economic, religious, political and ecological. Caught in this apparent helplessness, contemporary narratives of the future oscillate between blind denial and apocalyptic devastation. Neither will help us live the transformational Great Turning that is still - though maybe only just - within our grasp.

Our Summit is designed to support the emergence of a coherent new story for humanity and to produce practical, collaborative ways to live this new story.

» Explore the New Story Summit

FROM THE ARCHIVES: FIRST VISIT TO BURNING MAN

Burning Man is notoriously difficult to shoot even under the best conditions, and this year, we were rocked by mud-conjuring rain, epic dust storms, and running out of Red Bulls.   Before I dare call myself a veteran, it's worth revisiting my first time to the desert, in an essay I wrote in 2009 simply titled Burning Man:

"We burn the Man as a symbol. It is the burning away of your old self, your old worldview. The pretences you hold dear, the person you thought you were. We burn the Man to mirror the burning away of our outer shells."

» Read the full essay "Burning Man"
 

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