Mythic Journeys is a performance festival and conference gathering held in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, United States. Founded in 2004, it began as a celebration of the works of

Joseph Campbell Joseph John Campbell (March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American writer. He was a professor of literature at Sarah Lawrence College who worked in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work covers many aspects of the ...

and has expanded into a celebration of the role of

myth Myth is a folklore genre consisting of Narrative, narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or Origin myth, origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not Objectivity (philosophy), ...

and

storytelling Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own stories or narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cultural pre ...

in the modern world. Organized by the

Mythic Imagination Institute The Mythic Imagination Institute is a non-profit organization based in Atlanta, Georgia, whose purpose is to encourage a creative response to life, both individual and collective, through storytelling and mythology: "Every life is a story, and a sto ...

, the conference attracts such guests as

Deepak Chopra Deepak Chopra (; ; born October 22, 1946) is an Indian-American author and alternative medicine advocate. A prominent figure in the New Age movement, his books and videos have made him one of the best-known and wealthiest figures in alternati ...

James Hillman James Hillman (April 12, 1926 – October 27, 2011) was an American psychologist. He studied at, and then guided studies for, the C.G. Jung Institute in Zurich. He founded a movement toward archetypal psychology and retired into private practi ...

Robert Bly Robert Elwood Bly (December 23, 1926 – November 21, 2021) was an American poet, essayist, activist and leader of the mythopoetic men's movement. His best-known prose book is '' Iron John: A Book About Men'' (1990), which spent 62 weeks on ' ...

Janis Ian Janis Ian (born Janis Eddy Fink; April 7, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter who was most commercially successful in the 1960s and 1970s. Her signature songs are the 1966/67 hit " Society's Child (Baby I've Been Thinking)" and the 1975 Top T ...

John and Caitlin Matthews John Matthews (born 1948) and Caitlín Matthews (born 1952) are English writers. Together, they have written over 150 books and translated into more than thirty languages. Their work also includes Tarot packs, a card-based storytelling system, ...

Wendy Wendy is a given name now generally given to girls in English-speaking countries. In Britain, Wendy appeared as a masculine name in a parish record in 1615. It was also used as a surname in Britain from at least the 17th century. Its popularity ...

and

Brian Froud Brian Froud (born 1947) is an English fantasy illustrator and conceptual designer. He is most widely known for his 1978 book ''Faeries (book), Faeries'' with Alan Lee (illustrator), Alan Lee, and as the conceptual designer of the Jim Henson fil ...

Joyce Carol Oates Joyce Carol Oates (born June 16, 1938) is an American writer. Oates published her first book in 1963, and has since published 58 novels, a number of plays and novellas, and many volumes of short stories, poetry, and non-fiction. Her novels '' Bla ...

Terri Windling Terri Windling (born December 3, 1958 in Fort Dix, New Jersey) is an American editor, artist, essayist, and the author of books for both children and adults. She has won nine World Fantasy Awards, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award, and the Bram Stoke ...

, Ulla Suokko, and many other participants from such fields as psychology, religion, science, literature, education, entertainment, and the arts.

''Mythic Journeys'' documentary

Released in 2009, the documentary film ''Mythic Journeys'' was written and directed by

Stephen Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

and Whitney Boe. With footage taken from the 2006 Mythic Journeys festival, the movie includes animation and short film segments about the role of mythology and mysticism in modern society and storytelling, featuring interviews with Stephen Aizenstat, Ari Berk,

Michael Beckwith Michael Bernard Beckwith is a New Thought minister, author, and founder and spiritual director of the Agape International Spiritual Center in Beverly Hills, California. Career Beckwith is the founder and spiritual director of the Agape Internati ...

, Tom Blue Wolf, Jean Shinoda Bolen, José Andres Botran, Duncan Campbell,

, Honora Foah, Maren Tonder Hansen, Michael Karlin, Lynne Kaufman, Tricia Klink,

Ellen Kushner Ellen Kushner (born October 6, 1955) is an American writer of fantasy novels. From 1996 until 2010, she was the host of the radio program '' Sound & Spirit'', produced by WGBH in Boston and distributed by Public Radio International. Backgroun ...

, Michael Meade,

Michelle Nunn Mary Michelle Nunn (born November 16, 1966) is an American philanthropic executive and politician. Since 2015 she has been president and CEO oCARE USA the American national member of CARE International, the humanitarian aid and international de ...

, George Rosch,

Delia Sherman Cordelia Caroline Sherman (born 1951, Tokyo, Japan), known professionally as Delia Sherman, is an American fantasy writer and editor. Her novel ''The Porcelain Dove'' won the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award. Background Sherman attended The Chapin Scho ...

, Sobonfu Somé, and Robert Walter. Documentary footage is placed within a

frame story A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction *Framing (con ...

of Vikram and Betal for which

Brian Brian (sometimes spelled Bryan in English) is a male given name of Irish and Breton origin, as well as a surname of Occitan origin. It is common in the English-speaking world. It is possible that the name is derived from an Old Celtic word me ...

and

Wendy Froud Wendy Froud (''née'' Midener; born 1954) is an American doll-artist, sculptor, puppet-maker, and writer. She is best known for her work fabricating Yoda for the 1980 film '' Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back'', for which she has been called "th ...

created the puppets and actors

Tim Curry Timothy James Curry (born 19 April 1946) is an English actor and singer. He rose to prominence for his portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the film ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' (1975), reprising the role he had originated in the 1973 London ...

Mark Hamill Mark Richard Hamill (; born September 25, 1951) is an American actor and writer. He is known for his role as Luke Skywalker in the ''Star Wars'' film series, beginning with the original 1977 film and subsequently winning three Saturn Awards f ...

and

Lance Henriksen Lance Henriksen (born May 5, 1940) is an American actor. He is known for his works in various science fiction, action and horror films, such as that of Bishop in the ''Alien'' film franchise, and Frank Black in Fox television series ''Millennium ...

provided the voices.

References

External links

Mythic Imagination organization website''Mythic Journeys'' (2009) movie website
* Conferences in the United States Festivals in Atlanta Documentary films about spirituality Recurring events established in 2004 {{US-festival-stub