Stealing Magic is being hailed as one of the best films at this year's Tribeca Film Festival. It reads less like a traditional documentary and more like a spy thriller — think The Bourne Identity directed by Penn and Teller.
The plot involves a group of anonymous online thieves systematically stealing magic tricks and selling them on bootleg websites for a fraction of the legitimate price. Two illusionists travel the world in a cat-and-mouse game to expose these digital bandits and reveal their identities.
At the centre of this hunt is magician Andi Gladwin, who runs his own website selling magic tricks from fellow creators. When he noticed his inventory appearing on cheap knockoff sites, he became obsessed with uncovering the theft operation — an obsession that becomes the heart of the film.
The stakes are real. Magicians who create tricks spend years perfecting them, only to make around $2,000 to $3,000 per trick on average. When their work gets bootlegged, some creators can no longer afford to stay in the business.
"There really isn't that much money in it, and I think that's why most creators do it for the love of it," Gladwin explains in the doc. When their passion becomes theft, even hobbyists are forced to abandon their careers.
Director Matthew Testa's film captures the absurdity and genuine danger of the situation — a world where illusionists are anything but silent about their disappearing acts. The documentary makes you care deeply about tricks you'll never see and thieves you'll never meet.
Stealing Magic is positioned as a breakout hit from Tribeca 2026.
