Magic is the OLDEST of the performing arts. You may not realize the subculture within the magic scene. You may not realize magic as an international body with its own Olympics. Welcome to Fédération Internationale des Sociétés Magiques or FISM.
Federation Internationale des Societes Magiques began in 1937 in Paris France as Association Syndicale des Artistes Prestidigitateurs (Association of prestidigitation artists). It held its first convention in 1939 the Nazis invaded, thus the convention was cancelled & later rescheduled for another time. In Amsterdam Netherlands, 1946 the International Congress of Magicians & its 300 European member states met at a hotel. In 1947 the organization restructured itself into FISM, the World’s most respected governing body of magicians.
FISM is the governing body to many International magic organizations – the Society of American Magicians, the International Brotherhood of Magicians, the Canadian Association of Magicians & the Magic Circle. FISM’s main objective is to promote and preserve magic. Every 3 years it hosts its International convention and it’s World Championship of Magic competition. Competitors, who had been selected from FISM Qualifying contests like the North American FISM Qualifiers (which includes ALL North America). To be in a FISM Qualifier one must have had prior competited in any of the International organization contests like Society of American Magicians or International Brotherhood of Magicians contests.
A Few Of The International Magic Organizations Under FISM
Under FISM World Championship, competitors compete in eight categories; manipulation, general magic, stage illusions, micro magic, card magic, parlour magic, mental magic and invention. All categories have the same judging criteria and scoring that contestants must get in order to compete in the Grand Prix.
Between 1948 and 2022 only 13 US American magicians placed (1st, 2nd or 3rd) in respective categories between 1962 – 2022 (Remember FISM World Championship had been around since 1947). Of those 13, only 5 won Grand Prix between 1982 – 2022).
I am happy to say that Lance Burton is a fellow Kentuckian and was the youngest to win FISM to date.
OOPS! I made an error. Please see the redacted note.
What gives?
US American magicians winning FISM Grand Prix far and few between is an indictment on the US American culture. I had aspirations to compete in FISM but I learned when I was competing at the International Brotherhood of Magicians Gold Cups in 2009 – US American magicians are at a huge disadvantage. Unlike my European, Mexican, Korean & Japanese competitors at the 09 Gold Cups, neither I or my fellow US American competitors had the teamwork or the support crew. We US Americans are a firm believer in “Pick yourself up by your bootstraps”. We take the every man, woman & child for themselves approach. None of my fellow US American competitors had the cooperative cross discipline support that our European, Japanese, Korean, Mexican, etc counterparts had.
It Takes A Village To Make Champions.
Cooperation and collaboration is lacking in the USA Magic Scene. There is also a great deal of gate keeping in the domestic organizations. As long as the guards of old stand, fresh oxygen rich blood can’t flow in. Remember FISM picks its competitors from a pool of International qualifiers. US American magic organizations are struggling to get new members. Membership in the Society of American Magicians & International Brotherhood is made mostly of European, South American, Canadian, Asian, Central American, Oceania members. Fewer and fewer USA Nationals competing at the Qualifiers, fewer competitors representing the USA there will be.
Jordan Allen 