On Sunday, January 7, join us for a screening of American-Norwegian director Luke Lorentzen’s moving new documentary A Still Small Voice (USA, 2022)! Continuing through January, the Nordic & Baltic Oscar Contenders series features films chosen for Oscar nominations at the 96th Annual Academy Awards, including A Still Small Voice, a shortlisted contender for Best Documentary Feature Film.
In most American hospitals, alongside medical responses to illness and injury, lesser-known interventions take place every day. Responding to patients, family members and hospital staff who are experiencing spiritual and emotional distress, chaplains sit at bedsides, helping people to deepen connections with themselves, one another, and a world beyond this one. A Still Small Voice follows Mati, a chaplain completing a year-long residency at New York City’s Mount Sinai Hospital, as she learns to provide spiritual care to people confronting profound life changes. Following his acclaimed 2019 film Midnight Family, Luke Lorentzen digs into Mati’s spiritual work as an entry point to explore how we seek meaning in suffering, uncertainty, and grief.
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
Luke Lorentzen is an Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker and a graduate of Stanford University’s department of Art and Art History. His most recent film, A Still Small Voice, premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival where it won the U.S. Documentary Best Director Award. His previous film, Midnight Family, has won over 35 awards from film festivals and organizations around the world including a Special Jury Award for Cinematography at the Sundance Film Festival, Best Editing from the International Documentary Association, and the Golden Frog for Best Documentary from Camerimage. With Kellen Quinn, Luke is a co-founder of the independent production company Hedgehog Films.