A seminary dropout turned rock 'n' roll preacher has played the same Brooklyn bar for 20 years. Amen.
Winner of the DOC NYC Audience Award, Director Nick Canfield’s first film follows gospel-rock icon and activist Reverend Vince Anderson. After entering seminary, Vince dropped out to follow his second calling - music. With his band The Love Choir, he has played a now-legendary weekly show for over twenty years. Reconnecting with his faith and using his intense soulful music, he began to preach a type of spirituality that is open to all, meets people where they are, and moves everyone that sees him play. Reverend Vince is also deeply involved in social justice, working with other faith leaders around the country to build inclusive communities. Featuring Questlove and an ensemble of eccentric musicians, The Reverend is a rocking concert film as well as an intimate portrait of Reverend Vince’s inspiring personal and spiritual life.
Sound
Vince's gravel-voiced sermons over punk-funk organ freakouts
Direction
Canfield captures 20 years of holy chaos in a dingy Brooklyn bar
Production
Intimate vérité that earns every emotional crescendo
Director
Nick Canfield
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
DOC NYC's Audience Award win helped land the film distribution despite zero talking heads or archival footage—pure present-tense vérité.
Vince's 'ministry of music' exemplifies a broader movement of post-evangelical creatives rebuilding faith outside institutional walls—Jay Bakker's presence (son of televangelists Jim and Tammy Faye) underscores this lineage.
No ratings yet
Sign in to join the discussion — comments are spoiler-gated to your watch progress.
Discussion starters
US
