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Vision and Principles
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manifesto-and-principlesקולנוע קדם נבואי
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The Call
In these days, as the cultural boycott against Israel expands, and lists are published of international artists and cultural institutions boycotting Israeli art—this is an opportunity for renewal and a great cultural revolution.
This is a call for a new Jewish art—radical, prophetic, divine, daring, revolutionary—that shatters conventional modes of thought and renews the paradigms of wisdom and consciousness. An art that will transform Israel into a center of pioneering, avant-garde, Jewish-Israeli, universally human culture.
To rebel is like kicking a rotten door. A revolutionary Jewish culture must rebel against all the foundational conventions of contemporary culture and yield a new, groundbreaking creation that shatters conventional modes of thought and renews the paradigms of wisdom and consciousness.
The time has come to establish "illegal outposts" in the field of creation and to forge new paths towards the wondrous, the sublime, the roots, the roots of the roots, the soul, the soul of souls.
Awaken, revolutionaries! Arise, heroes of valor, courageous spirits, secular and religious, men and women, full of might and holiness, whose hearts have not been contaminated by the poison of despair. Arise! A great revolution calls us, for “Out of Zion shall go forth the Torah, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”
The Vision (החזון)
Pre-Prophetic Cinema is a movement dedicated to cultivating a new and revolutionary Israeli creation that draws nourishment from the prophetic roots of Hebrew culture. It aims to establish a New Israeli Wave, transforming Israel into a global epicenter of pioneering and avant-garde creation, on the path toward the revival of a modern prophetic Israeli culture.
The initiative draws inspiration from the vision of Rav Kook, who viewed the national revival as a comprehensive spiritual-cultural process leading to the resurgence of an Israeli prophetic culture in modern guise.
Rav Kook saw the development of the imagination in contemporary art as a process of preparing the vessels necessary for the revival of Hebrew prophecy.
The idea was born from a thirst for unique sources of inspiration, a search for a new creation unlike any other—avant-garde and groundbreaking, Israeli yet universal, Jewish yet non-sectarian; one that draws from the treasures of Judaism and refines them through the most contemporary tools.
Prophecy is the very heart of Judaism. It ceased approximately 2400 years ago. Yet, it is destined to return concurrent with the return to political sovereignty, accompanied by a great cultural ascent.
Approximately 2400 years ago, a complete prophetic culture existed within the People of Israel. There were schools for prophets, an entire discipline, a structured doctrine. Bands of "sons of the prophets" (students of prophecy) traversed the land, studying, among other things, music, athletics, exercises in concentration and intention, the refinement of the imagination, and more.
Following the cessation of the prophetic era, the remnants of Hebrew prophetic culture were preserved within the tradition, primarily in the esoteric teachings (Kabbalah), Midrash, and Aggadah.
This is a Concealed Treasure (Otzar Ganuz)—unique, from which the original Israeli talent, the Alternative Imagination, new forms of expression, and new artistic languages can emerge—a New Israeli Wave that has a message to present to itself and to the entire world.
Pre-Prophetic Cinema opposes "enlisted art" (art mobilized for ideology), sectarian art, and religious art in the narrow, diminishing sense of "Jewish folklore."
The Chimney Sweeps (מנקי הארובות)
The new creators will serve as a kind of "chimney sweep" for the human imagination. As Rabbi Sherki remarked regarding "The Little Prince," that the Jews are the chimney sweeps of humanity—so too the creators will be able to "unclog" blockages in human consciousness, thereby allowing art to reopen the channel between God and humanity anew.
The Creator's Inner Work (עבודתו הפנימית של היוצר)
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Purification and Refinement Before Creation: The creator must precede every creation with the intention of purification and rectification (Tikkun). One should not dip the pen (or the camera) without the purity of the soul and the sanctity of the idea.
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Inner Listening: Creation is not merely self-expression, but first and foremost an encounter with the Self. It begins with inner listening to the soul's own voice.
The Creating Soul (הנשמה היוצרת)
The source of the new creation is in soulic revelation. The soul, after all, sings always, creates ceaselessly, and the creator must ascend to the height of encountering their soul. One who lives the life of their soul is in a state of constant renewal of creation and song.
Shattering Patterns and Renewal ("Sacred Audacity"): Creation must shatter fixed modes of thought and renew the paradigms of wisdom and consciousness. There is a need for Sacred Audacity (Chutzpah D'Kedusha)—The spiritual courage to break sacred and artistic conventions from a place of higher purpose, the daring to ask radical questions and breach intellectual boundaries.
Absolute Liberty: Spiritual creation is free and does not consider external influences. It stems from the inner spirit; the more it believes in itself, the higher it ascends to the peaks of truth.
Effortless Creation: Creation should not be thought of as toil and labor. In the true moment of creation, the person resembles their Creator, who created the world without exertion; the process is not a forceful effort.
Creation as a Synthesis of All Culture
Rav Kook distinguishes four types of existential song, which are, in fact, four levels of consciousness and being: The Song of the Soul, The Song of the Nation, The Song of Humanity, and The Song of the World.
The Song of the Soul: The personal, existential song of the private soul. The simple, individual song.
The Song of the Nation: The "double" song, emerging from the private soul to sing the song of the nation.
The Song of Humanity: The "triple" song, transcending national boundaries to sing the song of universal humanity.
The Song of the World: The "quadruple" song, the broadest of all, singing the song of all existence, the song of the cosmos.
The tragedy begins when each song becomes a separate ideology, and the songs begin to quarrel and clash. Individualism clashes with nationalism; nationalism quarrels with universalism; and universalism clashes with the cosmic perception of all existence.
The Song of Songs – The Song of Unity (שיר השירים – שירת האיחוד)
Therefore, another song is required. A fifth song. A song that has no private content of its own, but whose role is to unify and include all the other songs.
This is The Song of Songs. The song in which the voices of all songs are included together in harmony. This is a holy song, a song of God, the Song of Israel.
This is the aspiration of the new, Pre-Prophetic creation. It must sing The Song of Songs—to unify, to include, to give place to the Song of the Soul, the Song of the Nation, the Song of Humanity, and the Song of the World. It must be a synthesis of all human culture.
The Call to the Creating Will (הקריאה לרצון היוצר)
Israeli creation that ascends to the roots of reality and the source of life has the power to generate a new reality and create new worlds.
Rav Kook distinguishes between the Generative Intellect (שכל יוצר) and the Depicting Intellect (שכל מצייר). The world is under the influence of Western culture, which aims to depict reality—to observe, document, replicate.
In contrast, Hebrew culture, in its prophetic roots, aspires not to depict but to create, to generate, to forge a new reality. It places the human being in creative partnership with the Creator, as one capable, through their Will, of creating new worlds.
The power of The Will - "The Creative Impulse of Being", that generates reality—this is the unique quality of Israeli creation in its originality.
Rav Kook writes extensively on the liberation of The Will, the liberty of The Will, the redemption of The Will, the revival of The Will, and the resurrection of The Will—as the basis for a future culture where the human being becomes a creator.
We call from here to the creators:
Arise, awaken! Refine your creating Will, elevate it to the sublime, and connect it to the root of reality, to the living Divine Will that sustains the entire world. The great sea of the General Will does not nullify any small, private will, but rather meets it—Will meets Will, Intellect meets Intellect, and everything unites and sustains the world, and new worlds are born and created ceaselessly.
Listen to the discourse of the soul and the living Will pulsing within it. Sound the voice, the original Israeli Will.
Establish Artistic Batei Midrash (Houses of Study/Creation): Create frameworks combining the study of Kabbalistic and prophetic texts with vibrant artistic practice—poetry, painting, music, and cinema, a dedicated journal, a prophetic festival.
Create Collaborations: Between secular and religious creators, break the boundaries between disciplines. Connect artists, philosophers, musicians, and filmmakers to create innovative, multi-sensory content.
Use the Most Innovative Tools: Embrace technologies like virtual reality and artificial intelligence to visualize prophetic ideas and breach the boundaries of the familiar.
Do Not Wait for Permission. Create, dare, break the boundaries that bind the spirit. Our creation will no longer be rebellion for the sake of rebellion, but a new creation. If the revolutionaries of the past discovered the subconscious and raw emotion, we are called to rediscover the power of the soul, the sanctity concealed in reality, and the miracle hidden in the mundane.
Foundational Principles of Pre-Prophetic Cinema
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The Sacred must expand into the domains of culture and art.
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The engagement with Imagination in culture and art brings closer the renewal of modern Israeli prophecy.
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The Imagination is a double-edged sword; it is capable of elevating humanity, and capable of degrading and humiliating it. When a person is subject to corrupted imagination, intellect alone will not extract them; only the Sacred Imagination, the Alternative Imagination, can. The new Jewish creation can present this Sacred Imagination.
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The new Jewish creation must shatter conventional modes of thought and renew the paradigms of wisdom and consciousness.
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The new Jewish creation must draw unique sources of inspiration from the Esoteric Torah (Kabbalah), Aggadah, and Midrash, where remnants of Hebrew prophetic culture have been preserved. They contain ahe Concealed Treasure for the new art.
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The new Jewish creation is capable of being a conduit for the new prophecy, capable of reopening the channel between God and humanity anew.
Principles of Pre-Prophetic Creation According to Rav Kook
The creator must precede creation with the thought of Teshuvah (Repentance/Return) / Tikkun (Rectification) / Zikuch (Purification):
“And literature shall be sanctified, and every writer shall begin to know the sublimity and the holiness in their work, and shall not dip their pen without purity of soul and sanctity of idea. At the very least, the thought of Teshuvah, profound reflections of Teshuvah, must precede every creation.”
(Shmona Kvatzim 4:64)
“One who has the soul of a creator is compelled to be a creator of ideas and thoughts; it is impossible for them to be confined solely to their superficial study. For the flame of the soul ascends of its own accord, and it is impossible to halt it in its course.”
(Orot HaKodesh)
The Creating Soul (הנשמה היוצרת)
The aim of Pre-Prophetic creation is the development of the power of The Creating Soul, to the point of realizing its inner strength, drawing from its source, revealing itself in constant renewal. One who lives the life of their soul is in a state of constant renewal of direct creation.
Rav Kook writes repeatedly that one must not stop or hinder The Creating Soul:
“The Creating Soul resides at the source of the light of the Torah. One must not hinder its course, full of joy and holy delight, due to any impurity or hindrance in the world. The entire world is not worthwhile compared to a single moment of supreme creation from the source of the Sacred. This stream of sublime life, pouring forth in one soul, brings (light) to the entire world.” (Shmona Kvatzim)
“One must not resist the essential soul in its revelation. And its revelation is constant; even when thick clouds cover its brightness, it shines with all its might, and it carries the world and humanity towards the goal of its happiness, which is exalted above any named goal. The soul contemplates without logic, acts without action. With it, only with it, do we ascend those heights towards which the entire thrust of the life of reality, in the depths of its mysteries, pushes us. Then you shall delight in the Lord. This is the secret of thirst, and the mystery of satiation.”
(Orot HaKodesh)
Inner Listening (ההקשבה הפנימית)
Creation is not only a tool for self-expression, but first and foremost an opportunity for an encounter with the Self. Creation begins with inner attentiveness to the soul's own voice.
One does not wait for the muse or inspiration—it is always present; rather, the creator ascends to the encounter with their soul:
“As long as a person must wait for times when the spirit of creation will rest upon them, and then they will innovate, contemplate, meditate, and sing—this is a sign that the illumination of their soul has not appeared upon them. The soul, after all, sings always; might and joy it has donned, supreme pleasantness surrounds it. And the person must ascend to the height of encountering their soul.”
(Orot HaKodesh)
Effortless Creation (יצירה ללא עמל ויגיעה)
Creation is not toil or labor; it is not a forceful effort:
“It is impossible to stop the creation of one whose soul creates constantly by its nature. Whenever spiritual weariness burdens, it comes only because the creator thinks that creation is toil. And the more one delves deeper into its secret, one comes to the realization that it involves no toil or labor whatsoever. And the person resembles their Creator, for the Holy One, Blessed be He, created His world without toil and labor.”
(Orot HaKodesh)
Freedom of Thought and Intuition (חופש המחשבה ואינטואיציה)
Creation stems from Freedom of Thought and reveals the magnitude of the "Speculative Worlds" (Olamot Hasha'ariyim)—worlds revealed through the power of Intuition, which transcends measured logic. The creator speculates in their heart and mind with full scope and breadth, and in absolute freedom of thought:
“We see no possibility of depicting freedom of thought, its elevation and refinement, except when it is given its full scope of magnitude, when its foundations are prepared according to the quantitative and qualitative magnitude, wherever its spiritual eyes may glance.”
“Spiritual creation is free. It does not consider any external influence; it creates according to its inner spirit. And the more its faith in itself intensifies within it, the higher it will ascend to the peaks of truth.”
(Orot HaKodesh)
The Inner Dynamics of Creation (דינמיקה פנימית של היצירה)
(Note: The following sections detail the psychological and spiritual dynamics inherent in the creative process)
The Anguish of Creation (צער היצירה)
Pure creation involves anguish, paralleling the anguish of the prophet. This is a pain stemming from the powerful encounter between two currents: “revelations of existence ascend from the depths... from the misty life within the flesh,” and conversely, “revelations of life descend, from the sphere of the most supreme soul.” This clash between the earthly and the heavenly, between matter and spirit, involves the agony of the "destruction of inner worlds," to enable the appearance of a new creation. Superficial creators recoil from this anguish, but the true creator knows that within it is concealed the crown of spiritual sovereignty.
From Anguish to Delight (The Dialectic of Pure Creation) (מצער לעדן)
Contrary to the romantic perception, spiritual creation is not born from light-headedness and serenity. It begins with the "Anguish of Creation"—a pain stemming from the artist's necessary detachment from the limited, familiar world, and grappling with the "birth pangs" of a new consciousness and form. But according to the Esoteric Torah (Kabbalah), the greatest delight is not a reward at the end of the road, but is concealed within the anguish itself. The Pre-Prophetic creator learns not to flee from the anguish, out of faith that in its depths lies the greatest and truest delight.
The Awe of Chaos (Creative Anxiety) (יראת התוהו)
This is the initial and critical stage in the creative process, occurring when a new idea arises in the creator's consciousness. Just before the idea crystallizes and takes form, the creator might be seized by the "Awe of Chaos" (Yir'at HaTohu)—a profound anxiety facing the infinite and raw potential of the new thought. This fear might cause paralysis, leaving the creator with only the "raw thought," causing the creation to be "flawed" and narrow. According to Rav Kook, this awe is sometimes related to the creator's inner state or the state of the entire generation, and overcoming it is an act of "Redemption" (Geulah)—where the creator redeems their "imprisoned thoughts," gives them form, and sets them free. This is the redemption of soulic creation.
The Call to the Secret (Sod) (הקריאה אל הסוד)
True creation cannot be satisfied with what is revealed and known. The modern soul, especially the creator's soul, demands "secrets of the world, secrets of the Torah, the secret of God" to quench its thirst. The insistence on finding all spiritual satisfaction only in the revealed aspect of reality depletes the strength and leads to disillusionment. Pre-Prophetic creation calls to Liberate the Discourse—to give freedom to the concealed secret speech, and it seeks to express the hidden and inner dimension of existence.
Prophecy (הנבואה)
Prophecy is the primary virtue (Segula) of the Israeli nation. As creators, we can prepare the vessels for the renewal of Israeli prophecy; that is, to expand the boundaries of the imagination, shatter fixed modes of thought, renew paradigms of wisdom and consciousness, awaken soulic discourse, connect truth and beauty, elevate the world, and lead a spiritual-cultural revolution in the People of Israel and the entire world.
"Pre-Prophetic Cinema" was born from a years-long quest for a new language, for a new Israeli creation unlike any other.
This is a call to the original Israeli talent rooted in Hebrew prophetic culture—not to escape reality, but to forge from it a new, redeeming reality.
This website is an invitation to a journey. To every creator who feels that same thirst.
And here, we extend a call to creators—secular and religious—to feel that this is your stage. To take an active part in the discourse and the creation, to join the journey, to make an impact, and to generate together a new body of knowledge and creation unlike anything else—Israeli, Jewish, and Universal.
To deepen, expand, and continue the journey—we invite you to explore the following pages of this site.
Welcome to the journey
These ideas are just the tip of the iceberg. For more information and to continue the discussions, you are warmly invited to visit and participate in the website's blog.
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