Carsey-Wolf Center at UC Santa Barbara 
CWC Docs: Monkey on a Stick
- Thursday, April 10, 2025 / 7:00 PM - 9:30 PM (PDT)
- Pollock Theater
- Screening Format: 4K digital projection (105 minutes)
- With Jason Lapeyre (filmmaker) and Nori Muster (documentary subject/historical advisor)
Monkey on a Stick is a feature-length hybrid documentary/drama exposé of the criminal activity that took place in and around the Hare Krishna movement in the West in the 1970s and 1980s. Adapted from the New York Times-bestselling book by John Hubner and Lindsey Gruson, it tells the story of devotees like Nori Muster, a young woman from Los Angeles who joins the movement to find inner peace and spiritual meaning, only to discover a rotting heart of criminal activity within ISKCON, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Drug smuggling, stockpiling weapons, and the subjugation and exploitation of female devotees metastasizes to widespread child sexual abuse and murder, all under the watch of the eleven gurus who run the movement. Monkey on a Stick investigates how and why human nature can inspire the purest spiritual dreams in some, while leading others to manifest our darkest, basest nightmares.
Filmmaker Jason Lapeyre and documentary subject/historical advisor/UCSB alumnus Nori Muster will join moderator David Gartrell (UCSB Library) for a post-screening discussion of Monkey On a Stick.
This event is free but a reservation is recommended in order to guarantee a seat.
Biographies
Filmmaker Jason Lapeyre
Jason Lapeyre is a director, producer, and screenwriter working in both features and television. His first feature, Cold Blooded, won Best Canadian Film at Fantasia. His second feature, I Declare War, played at TIFF, won the Audience Award at Fantastic Fest, and was released theatrically by Drafthouse Films. His first television project, the digital series Warigami, premiered at Canneseries. His documentary The Texas Cheerleader Murder Plot premiered on Max in December 2024, and became the fourth highest-viewed program on the platform over the holidays. His latest film is Monkey On a Stick, a documentary exposé of the Hare Krishna movement.
photo: Dustin Rabin
Documentary subject and historical advisor Nori Muster
Nori Muster graduated from UCSB in 1978 with a degree in Sociology. Upon meeting the Hare Krishnas in Isla Vista, she moved into the Los Angeles Hare Krishna temple the day after graduation. She worked in their PR department for ten and a half years. During her final year in the temple, Nori took writing classes through the UCLA Extension Writer’s Program. Inspired by her teachers and fellow students, she wrote a five-hundred-page rough draft of her memoir.
After leaving the temple, Nori earned her master’s degree at Western Oregon State College in 1991. In 1996, the University of Illinois Press published her memoir Betrayal of the Spirit: My Life Behind the Headlines of the Hare Krishna Movement. In 2019, Canadian director Jason Lapeyre and John Hubner, co-author of bestselling book Monkey on a Stick: Murder, Madness, and the Hare Krishnas, invited Nori to take part in a documentary based on the book. Nori continues working as a researcher and freelance writer. Her website is norimuster.com.
Moderator David Gartrell (UCSB Library)
David Gartrell is Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts at UCSB Library’s Special Research Collections. He holds an MLIS with a specialization in archives from UCLA’s School of Education & Information Studies. Since 2001, he has been working with the American Religions Collection, which includes Nori Muster’s papers.
This event is sponsored by the Carsey-Wolf Center and the UCSB Library.
CWC Docs
The Carsey-Wolf Center is committed to screening documentaries from across the world that engage with contemporary and historical issues, especially regarding social justice and environmental concerns. Documentaries allow filmmakers to address pressing issues and frame the critical debates of our time.