Dance Rebels: A Story of Modern Dance

Danser sa peine

Dance for All

A documentary on social dancing in Sweden and the culture surrounding it.

Leon Gast's musical documentary reveals New York City's Latin culture and features live performances of salsa greats The Fania All Stars and The Spanish Speaking People of New York. A document of urban American Hispanic culture, Gast's film captures the rhythms of New York's Spanish Harlem, from illegal cockfights and Santeria rituals to the rooftops and backstreets of El Barrio and the legendary musicians performing at the Cheetah club.

In Buenos Aires a group of acclaimed dancers create the first Contemporary National Company of Dance under their collective leadership. This is the story of four talented dancers, Ernesto, Bettina, Victoria and Pablo, along six years of their journey. We follow their lives, we attend their rehearsals and performances in the emblematic building of the National Library, along with their premiere and backstage in the historical National Theatre of Cervantes. They expose their dreams as dancers, individuals and members of our society, as we observe the fulfilment of their biggest dream: the demand of a National Dance Law. Amazing choreographies, beautiful folklore songs and original Latin-American contemporary music reveal the beauty of dance becoming life.

In a video installation distilled from a live performance that Forsythe choreographed and directed in 2016, dancers Rauf "Rubberlegz" Yasit and Riley Watts clasp and unclasp each other in complex configurations that make it difficult for the viewer to determine where one body ends and the other begins. This slow-motion physical and optical puzzle, which Forsythe calls an "entanglement", is a choreographic event from which the common elements typically associated with choreography—the structural development of time and space and the visual isolation of parts—have been subtracted. The complex "threading" of the dancers' bodies into their own negative spaces creates visual conundrums that defy the apparent logic of the situation. The title is a play on words that, like the human situation it describes, threads two languages together: the English word "align", which sounds like the German word "allein" (alone), is fused with the German word "Einigung" (agreement).

Released on DVD as part of The Criterion Collection's "Martha Graham: Dance on Film" collection.

BLACK BALLERINA tells the story of several black women from different generations who fell in love with ballet. Six decades ago, while pursuing their dreams, Joan Myers Brown, Delores Browne and Raven Wilkinson confronted racism, exclusion and unequal opportunity. Today, young dancers of color continue to face formidable challenges breaking into the overwhelmingly white world of ballet. Moving back and forth in time, this lyrical, character driven film shows how far we still have to go and stimulates a fresh discussion about race, inclusion and opportunity across all sectors of American society.

A look into the hard working heart of neo-burlesque.

Filmmaker Rodney Evans embarks on a scientific and artistic journey, questioning how his loss of vision might impact his creative future. Through illuminating portraits of three artists: a photographer (John Dugdale), a dancer (Kayla Hamilton), and a writer (Ryan Knighton), the film looks at the ways each artist was affected by the loss of their vision and the ways in which their creative process has changed or adapted.

Follows the plight of real-life dancers as they struggle through auditions for the Broadway revival of A Chorus Line and also investigates the history of the show and the creative minds behind the original and current incarnations.

An experimental film following a trip made by three friends in which the contrast between the agitated city of São Paulo, Brazil and the calmness of the beach leads the flow. No script. No story. Just vibes.

Why do we do incredibly difficult things that have no practical application? Is there a parallel between geographic and artistic exploration? Fram is a documentary and travel film about two friends journeying to the end of the earth, in order to make a dance film in the arctic wilderness of Svalbard. En route, they explore the history of our ideas of the Arctic, along with the grand questions of life, art and our place in the world. Sharing their love of discovering new geographic and artistic frontiers, choreographer-dancer-filmmakers and outdoor enthusiasts Thomas Freundlich and Valtteri Raekallio take the viewer on an engaging journey to a place where few have been and even fewer have danced.

Plató

Jürgen Leppert, also known as "Der Dreher" or "der Kreisel" is a graduate engineer, speaker inventor, 360 degree dancer, gifted Frisbee player and thoroughbred 68er. Everything revolves around the Karlsruher legend, and not just on the dance floor. A declaration of love to music, dancing and rebellion. A portrait of a tough person who still swims against the stream and the living proof that 81 years is far from too old for hard raves.

A far-out trip through two hours of psychedelic clips from 1960's hippie flicks.

A place to be at night in São Paulo.

James Brown's legacy has influenced rap, soul, funk and R&B. But along with his huge talent, there's a dark side to Brown's success that includes stints in prison and unceasing tabloid speculation. This in-depth documentary takes a look at the meteoric highs and deep lows of Brown's career, offering some fascinating insights from the Godfather of Soul himself, as well as interview footage with Chuck D, Little Richard, Wyclef Jean and many others.

The first woman to appear in front of an Edison motion picture camera and possibly the first woman to appear in a motion picture within the United States. In the film, Carmencita is recorded going through a routine she had been performing at Koster & Bial's in New York since February 1890.

This documentary on the "youth movement" of the late 1960s focuses on the hippie pot smoking/free love culture in the San Francisco Bay area.