Seductive, fearless, and outrageous, Marina Abramović, who some affectionately call ‘the grandmother of performance art’, has been redefining what art is for nearly 40 years. Using her own body as a vehicle, pushing herself beyond her limits – and at times risking her life in the process – she creates performances that challenge, shock, and move us. Marina Abramović The Artist Is Present follows the artist as she prepares for what may be the most important moment of her life: a major new retrospective of her work, taking place at The Museum of Modern Art. To be given a retrospective at one of the world’s premier museums is the most exhilarating sort of milestone. For Marina, it is far more: it is the chance to finally silence the question she has been hearing over and over again for four decades: “But why is this art?” Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present is by no means a typical “art film.” With total access granted by the artist and MoMA, the first time director Mattew Akers, known for his expertise in shooting cinéma vérité, takes us a mesmerizing cinematic journey inside the world of radical performance, and an intimate portrait of an astonishingly magnetic, endlessly intriguing woman who draws no distinction between life and art.