A Body to Live In (2025)

Plot Summary

A BODY TO LIVE IN offers an uncompromising look at the rise of BDSM performance art, body modification and the ‘modern primitives’ cultural movement through the agonies and ecstasies of transgressive artist Fakir Musafar and the communities that surrounded him. Blending rare archival footage with the voices of queer and artistic trailblazers, the film shows how pain, ritual, and transformation became tools of identity, survival, and self-expression. Weaving from early experiments and secret gatherings to the emergence of a global subculture shaped by the AIDS crisis and spiritual reinvention, Director Angelo Madsen (NORTH BY CURRENT) reveals not just the story of one artist, but a collective history of bodies in revolt - asking what it truly means to live freely in one’s own skin.

Full Cast & Characters

Fakir Musafar

Self (Archival)

Annie Sprinkle

Self

Ron Athey

Self

Genesis P-Orridge

Self (Archive Footage)

Cléo Dubois

Self

Yossie Silverman

Self

Paul R. King

Self

Midori

Self

Director & Crew

Official Trailer

Where to Watch A Body to Live In Online

Frequently Asked Questions