Filmed over ten years at the New York City Bellevue Program for Survivors of Torture, Transcendence – the first documentary of its kind – follows the healing journeys of a Tibetan nun, a Chadian human rights advocate, a Jamaican gay man, and a survivor of Sierra Leone’s civil war who come to the US seeking refuge as they work with care providers to overcome unimaginable cruelty, rebuild their lives, and find the strength to speak out against those who terrorised their communities in the countries they once called home.

As each person tells their story, they reverse the silence their oppressors sought to impose. By speaking out, they are taking radical action in the name of freedom — and delivering a message of hope, healing, courage, and resistance that is more important than ever.