WTF is on my Mind?!

By: Mark Vicente
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  • Summary

  • Author, Speaker, Whistleblower and award-winning Director Mark Vicente was behind the sleeper hit “What The Bleep Do We Know?!” Several books have been written about the film’s remarkable grassroots marketing campaign, which led to its unprecedented success.

    Mark was born in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1965. Taking his first photograph at age four, he quickly discovered his passion for being behind the camera. After attending film and drama school in South Africa, he began working his way up the ranks of the camera department, from Assistant to Operator to Cinematographer. His first big break came as Director of Photography on the musical “SARAFINA,” starring Whoopi Goldberg. In 1992, he set his sights on Hollywood and relocated to Los Angeles to shoot his first studio picture for Disney; “FATHERHOOD,” starring Patrick Swayze and Halle Berry. At the age of 26, he became one of the youngest cinematographers to shoot a big-budget studio picture.

    Over the next few decades, he went on to shoot an additional 14 feature films and numerous documentaries, music videos and commercials. Mark soon found there were in him, untold stories he desperately wanted to express as a Director. He was driven by the conviction that tales of greatness, nobility and introspection could be exciting and financially successful.

    Perhaps because of the very obvious race and class iniquities in South Africa, he found himself propelled to question certain fundamental assumptions at a very young age. Beliefs about human behavior, cosmology, religion, existentialism and mysticism. Along the way, he stumbled into a few situations where leaders with malignant pathologies (masquerading as saintly philosophers) spoke the talk of self-improvement but did untold damage to their followers... and him.

    Looking back, he can now say he has been in at least two cults. His last foray into personal growth and his defection from NXIVM was chronicled in the HBO series “The Vow”. Mark and a few plucky whistleblowers exposed the criminal activities of the organization, resulting in multiple arrests and indictments. He doesn’t consider himself a cult expert, but by his own admission, “I’m an expert in being screwed over, waking up, and knowing how to spot them.” He’s got a pretty salty approach to most things and is fascinated by the myriad patterns in the human psychodynamic that create the best and the worst in civilization.

    Join Mark as he unpacks a whole range of topics to do with: Psychology, Consciousness, Morality, Narcissistic Abuse, Spirituality, Cults, Propaganda, Science, Filmmaking, and Philosophy.You never quite know what you’re going to get, as it really does depend on… WTF is on his mind?!
    © 2024 WTF is on my Mind?!
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Art Social Sciences True Crime
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Episodes
  • Hiding the Truth: How Suppression Fractures Us!

    Hiding the Truth: How Suppression Fractures Us!
    Dec 27 2024

    In this episode: I explore the concept of suppression and how it affects us personally, in families, and on a societal scale. We explore how suppressing ideas, emotions, and beliefs can lead to fragmentation and toxicity. Drawing from personal insights, psychological observations, and real-world examples, I discuss the dangers of censorship, fear-based control, and the societal consequences of suppressing inconvenient truths.

    • Suppression and censorship in personal, family, and societal contexts.
    • Narcissists, dissociation, and how suppression starts from childhood trauma.
    • The psychological impact of suppressing emotions and ideas, and how therapy aims to reclaim lost parts of ourselves.
    • How patriarchs or matriarchs suppress ideas within families to enforce control and perfection, leading to unhealthy dynamics.
    • The parallels between family suppression and societal censorship, and the false belief that silencing ideas makes them disappear.
    • Exploring how suppressed emotions and ideas fester, eventually leading to toxicity or explosive outbursts.
    • The societal obsession with censoring ideas, and the dangers of labeling opposing views as "misinformation" or "disinformation."
    • An examination of how corporations influence media narratives and the rise of propaganda.
    • Historical examples of suppressed voices, the consequences of deplatforming, and the need to question official narratives.
    • How suppressed societies eventually reach a breaking point, leading to revolts mislabeled as misinformation or conspiracy.
    • A touching story of how unburdening suppressed emotions brought freedom to a dying friend.
    • My thoughts on the societal revolt against censorship, suppression, and the control of narratives.
    • A final reflection on the dangers of hiding truths and the importance of pushing against sacred cows in pursuit of authenticity.

    Support the show

    The views and opinions expressed on WTF is on my Mind?! do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast or Mark Vicente. Any content provided by guests are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything.

    Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/MarkVicente
    Website: www.markvicente.com
    Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@markvicente7
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/markvicente/
    X: https://x.com/markvicente
    TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mark_vicente
    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/markvicente/
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    27 mins
  • What is CONSENT? Does Yes mean YES?

    What is CONSENT? Does Yes mean YES?
    Dec 22 2024

    In this episode: I talk to two incredible women who are leading the charge to redefine how we think about and legislate consent—Joyce Short and Nina Lucas of the Consent Awareness Network, or CAN.

    If Joyce Short gets her way, both “Yes Means Yes” and “No Means No” will be stricken from our laws. She is a sexual assault survivor and the author of 4 books that can turn our human right to consent into a civil right backed by law.

    She is the founder and Chief Executive of the Consent Awareness Network and a TEDx Talk Presenter. She has been an expert witness and the architect of several legislative bills that can radically change how our justice system deals with consent.

    Joyce has been featured on Nightline, CBS News, BuzzFeed, Inside Edition, the NY Times, and more, and she’s been quoted in books and journals, including “The Moment” by Andrea Constand, and has been honored as a 'Woman of Distinction" by the NY State Assembly.

    Nina Lucas serves as Chief of Staff and a Consent Outreach Ambassador for the Consent Awareness Network (CAN). She is also an activist with Never Alone Advocacy, founded to fight back against abuse of power in the military. As a classically trained singer, Nina's secret superpower is opera and she is dedicated to applying her robust voice to inform, educate and empower however she can in all efforts to #CodifyConsent

    WEBSITE: www.consentawareness.net

    Joyce's TEDx TALK: https://bit.ly/DefineConsent

    Joyce's Book: Your Consent: The Key to Conquering Sexual Assault (revised edition): bit.ly/ConsentRevised

    ACTION ITEM - SIGN THE PETITION: http://bit.ly/BillPetition

    DONATE: https://consentawareness.net/donate/

    OTHER CULT/CONSENT podcast appearances:

    A Little Bit Culty

    Something Was Wrong

    CONTACT US: bit.ly/ConsentAmbassador

    #FGKIA - freely given, knowledgeable informed agreement (by a person with the capacity to reason)

    #CodifyConsent

    Support the show

    The views and opinions expressed on WTF is on my Mind?! do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast or Mark Vicente. Any content provided by guests are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything.

    Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/MarkVicente
    Website: www.markvicente.com
    Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@markvicente7
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/markvicente/
    X: https://x.com/markvicente
    TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mark_vicente
    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/markvicente/
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    1 hr and 9 mins
  • Yachts, Sex & NXIVM

    Yachts, Sex & NXIVM
    Dec 8 2024

    In this episode: How my film, "What the Bleep Do We Know?!" led to a weird encounter with a clinical psychologist on a yacht. My eventual induction into NXIVM and my confusion about Keith Raniere's 'Sex Den'. I talk about death anxiety, power dynamics, and the behavior of leaders who claim to have achieved a higher state of consciousness yet engage in questionable practices.

    Support the show

    The views and opinions expressed on WTF is on my Mind?! do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast or Mark Vicente. Any content provided by guests are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything.

    Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/MarkVicente
    Website: www.markvicente.com
    Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@markvicente7
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/markvicente/
    X: https://x.com/markvicente
    TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mark_vicente
    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/markvicente/
    Show More Show Less
    25 mins

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Profile Image for Mutley_20

Compelling, must-listen to podcast

Watching The Vow led me to this podcast and have to say it's one of my favourite podcasts, some very compelling episodes, interesting takes, and great guests. Extremely well put together! Love it!

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