Part documentary, part performance film, “Trust Us, This Is All Made Up” explores the magic and mystery of long-form improv with nothing but two men, three chairs, eight cameras and an expectant audience.  But these are no ordinary men. As the highly regarded comedy duo known as T J and Dave, T J Jagodowski and David Pasquesi improvise hourlong plays without any prior writing or discussion. “We don’t know anything until we look at each other; then we know everything,” Mr. Pasquesi says, referring to the alchemic moment when the lights dim and the audience holds its breath. What follows is a creative tour de force, an intellectual high-wire act as astonishing as it is entertaining.  Anchored by a remarkable 2008 show at the Barrow Street Theater in the West Village, “Trust Us” fleshes out the artistic process with a brief prologue covering the genesis of the act (both men are alumni of Second City in Chicago) and its people-watching preparation ritual. “We practice paying attention,” Mr. Jagodowski says, avidly eyeing a couple on a park bench. They also practice mutual support, as evidenced by a dressing-room post-mortem that reveals much about the dynamics of their collaboration.  Occasionally splitting the screen to remind us the men are not a single entity, the director, Alex Karpovsky, gives life and form to the invisible act of one brain sparking another, showcasing a connection as ineffable as creativity itself.  TRUST US, THIS IS ALL MADE UP  Opens on Thursday in Brooklyn.  Directed and edited by Alex Karpovsky; directors of photography, Ari Boles, Marshall Coles, Daniel McKeown, Kevin Graham and Ashton Evetts; produced by Adam Roffman, David Modigliani, Jessica Wolfson, Asaf Ronen and Mr. Karpovsky; released by TrustUsFilm. At the reRun Gastropub Theater, 147 Front Street, Dumbo. Running time: 1 hour 23 minutes. This film is not rated.  WITH: T J Jagodowski and David Pasquesi.
Alex Karpovskyâs documentary films a New York show by the Chicago improv team T J and Dave, and preparations and post-mortems before and after a performance.