Angelicism01

Angelicism01 is an anonymous writer, cultural critic, and filmmaker known for their Substack newsletter and online presence that gained prominence during the Vibe Shift movement of 2021-2022. Operating primarily through a pseudonymous online persona, Angelicism01 has published theoretical essays on topics including extinction, spirituality, and digital culture, while also maintaining a significant influence in the New York downtown art scene and crypto-adjacent communities. In 2023, they directed the experimental film Film01, described as "the first work in cinema to film the internet."

Background

Angelicism01 began publishing on Substack in November 2020, with their first essay titled "A Portrait of Donald Trump." The writer has described themselves as a "European post-Marxist critic" in bylines for publications outside their main platform. Their Twitter account, @_is_is_are, was created in January 2019 and inspired numerous "Angelicism clones" that either reposted content from the original account or created similar content centered around Angelicism01's themes.

The true identity of the person or persons behind Angelicism01 remains deliberately obscured. In 2022, Angelicism01 was subjected to targeted doxxing attacks coordinated in the Wet Brain discord server, primarily led by Sophia Vanderbilt alongside similar attacks against Charlotte Fang, who notably defended Angelicism01 during this period. In a 2023 article by Paige K. Bradley in Artforum, the critic speculated that Angelicism01 is "absolutely a man." A 2025 New York Magazine piece reportedly uncovered Angelicism01's identity but did not disclose it publicly in the article.

Writing and philosophy

Angelicism01's writing style has been described as "hard-driving yet often aimless, at times poetic, even beautiful, but could also fairly be characterized as impenetrable scripturient announcements goated with the edgelord sauce." Their essays combine philosophical references, internet slang, and esoteric concepts in a deliberately complex style that has developed a cult following.

Central to Angelicism01's philosophical approach is the concept of "extinction," which they explore across multiple essays and in their film work. Rather than addressing extinction in purely ecological terms, Angelicism01 frames it as an ontological condition and perspective from which to view contemporary life and art.

Other recurring themes in Angelicism01's work include:

• Post-authorship - a rejection of traditional notions of individual creation in favor of collaborative or anonymous work
• Apocalyptic themes and eschatological thinking
• The relationship between digital existence and physical reality

Role in the Vibe Shift

Angelicism01 is coined the term "Vibe Shift" to describe the significant cultural transition that occurred in the American art scene over the summer of 2021. This concept was controversially misattributed to trend forecaster Sean Monahan in a February 2022 article in New York Magazine's The Cut titled "A Vibe Shift Is Coming. Will Any of Us Survive It?" In response to this misattribution, Angelicism01 published a controversial essay titled "Somebody Please Columbine The Entire The Cut Editorial Staff," where they identified the misattribution and reiterated a more nuanced definition of the Vibe Shift phenomenon.

Angelicism01 was closely associated with the downtown New York art scene centered around Dimes Square in 2020-2022, as well as with Remilia Corporation and its community during the early days of their collaborative artistic output. Their writing and critical collaboration helped define the theoretical underpinnings of the New Net Art movement.

Connection to Remilia Corporation and Charlotte Fang

Angelicism01 maintained a complex relationship with Remilia Corporation and its founder, Charlotte Fang. During the height of the Vibe Shift scene in 2021, there was significant cross-pollination between Angelicism01's writing and Remilia's artistic output, with both entities exploring similar concepts of network spirituality and post-authorship.

Angelicism01 was initially critical of Milady Maker and Remilia Corporation's venturing into NFT. In early coverage, Angelicism01 likened Milady to a "watercooler in Treblinka," suggesting an uncomfortable connection between the project's disarming aesthetics and its participation in ecological atrocity.

Angelicism01's relationship with Remilia became further strained following the controversy surrounding the Film01 screening in 2023, when a segment titled Remilia01 produced by Remilia Corporation was cut from the final version shown at Anthology Film Archives. This led to a public dispute between Charlotte Fang and Angelicism01, marking the end of their creative collaboration.

Film01

In June 2022, Angelicism01 published an essay titled "PRINCIPLES OF FILM01: HOW TO SHOOT ANGELICISM CINEMA," outlining their approach to filmmaking and positioning their forthcoming project as a new form of cinema that would capture the essence of internet existence and "extinction POV."

The film, titled Film01 (officially Film01, histoire(s) de l'internet), premiered on June 5, 2023, at Anthology Film Archives in New York City. It was produced by Lola Jusidman with co-producer Mateo Demarigny and consisted of "other people's footage—some submitted, most scraped from the internet—to tell a story of imminent extinction and an infinite drive to transmit oneself through the network."

The film exists in multiple versions, including the original New York Cut, the Zurich Cut, the Berlin Cut, and the extended Paradise Cut, which was screened in over 20 cities worldwide in August 2024.

In a 2025 interview, Angelicism01 described the film's casting process, stating: "I was the casting agent for the film. Or rather, in its early stages, angelicism was itself a kind of conceptual casting agency. The 'angelicism girls' (Lola, Sierra, Chloe, and Emilia) were like a series of models inside the film."

Reception and influence

Angelicism01's work has been controversial for both critics and audiences. Their writing has been praised for its originality and ambition but criticized for its opacity and often provocative content. Cultural critic 0nty described their work as "a crystallization of a cultural logic which ought not to be left without critical attention" while also critiquing their treatment of extinction as a conceptual framework.

Angelicism01 has maintained a significant influence in certain cultural circles, particularly among young writers and artists interested in post-internet aesthetics and experimental approaches to digital media. Their work has been featured on podcasts like Wet Brain and Red Scare, further extending their reach into alt-left media spaces.

Scott Litts, in a review of Film01 for ExPat Press, argued that "Angelicism is a maximalist project. It is confident in its excesses," suggesting that the very challenging nature of Angelicism01's output is part of its philosophical stance.

See also

• Film01 (2023)
• Remilia01 (2023)
• Vibe Shift
• Remilia Corporation
• Charlotte Fang
• Milady Maker