Transformation: The Life & Legacy of Werner Erhard
Documentary review by Pavel Mikoloski
Whatever happened to Werner Erhard?
In the 80’s it was hard to avoid knowing about him. People attended his Erhard Seminars Training, known as “est,” in legion in all of the major cities. It sometimes felt to people like me, living in New York City at the time, that these people were hard to get rid of – that they were hell-bent on recruitment and wouldn’t take “no” for an answer. Even those of us who were interested in transformation found it hard to avoid the “newly empowered.” There was even a disparaging name for them. They were called “est-holes.”
In her new documentary, Transformation: The Life & Legacy of Werner Erhard, which premiered in April at the Palm Beach International Film Festival, Producer/Director Robyn Symon does a wonderful job separating the myth from the man. A former staff Producer with PBS and a two time Emmy winner, Symon brings us up to date on this past cultural icon, now all but forgotten.
I was pleased to see that Symon does not shy away from the controversies which swirled around this man, and which resulted in his walking away from est and going underground in 1991. At the same time she also manages to honor the work of one of the key figures in the Human Potential Movement. Anyone who has an interest in the power of the mind and in personal transformation would do well to see this film, as it presents an unbiased look at a volatile and creative period in American Pop Cultural History, and elucidates the reasons for this innovative leader’s departure from the American scene.
In the 70’s and 80’s Werner Erhard, pioneer of the multi-billion dollar personal growth industry was known for his boot-camp approach to “waking people up,” getting them “off their bullshit,” and into finding their true selves. In his seminars he raised his voice, confronted the myriads of people who were invested in their “stories,” and produced change – change in the lives of the participants, change in relationships with their families, and change in businesses, corporations, and the educational sphere.
The documentary does no real examination of where he gained his knowledge (It is mentioned he had taken some courses in Scientology, and there are oblique references to the German philosopher, Heidegger and eastern mysticism) for the purpose of this film is not an exploration of the ideas which found their way into his courses, and later, into the American vernacular. Instead it is a look at the man himself, with all of his charisma and his blemishes, as well as the reasons he left the US in 1991.
A great deal of the film footage is from the est era - a time warp that brings you right back to the counter culture in its heyday, with its styles of dress and hairdos. Next > 1 2 3 4
