The theme of the September 2024 was “Searching for Connection”.
Audience Award:
Best Dance Film: amalgaMOTION: We move as one
Best Ballet Film: LAKE OF DREAMS
Best Direction: RUINS WITHIN RUINS
Best Story: STRANGE FRUIT: THE HIP-HOPERA “HEAR THE CRY”
Best Choreography: FR:AGILITY
Best Individual Performance: OUT OF THE DARK
Best Editing: YOU ARE AT THE NATIONAL MUSEUM
Best Group Performance: STILL
Best Cinematography: AT LAKE
Best Sound & Music: MITOTE – SMOKEY MIRROR
SEE THE LINEUP OF FILMS:
STRANGE FRUIT: THE HIP-HOPERA “HEAR THE CRY”, 8min., USA
Directed by Marlon Jones, Dyneesha Moore
Imagine a powerful Black woman in the 21st century being thrust back into the 1800s Antebellum South as a slave with only one chance to escape back to her reality. This is the story of LaShelle Robinson, a spit-fire Wall Street executive, who travels back in time to rescue her enslaved ancestor, Inka, from a violent lynching — all to lift the generational curse off her white fiancé, Todd Decatur, the love of her life. After all, it is his ancestors that killed hers — a curse which now blocks their marriage. Her spirit guide, June, a magical Underground Railroad conductor, guides LaShelle back on her extraordinary journey of discovery. A thrilling hip-hop musical told through rap, song and dance, Strange Fruit is like 12 Years a Slave meets Hamilton. The story navigates the precarious road to discovering your roots, racial reconciliation, romance and ultimately redemption.
http://www.strangefruithiphopera.com/
https://www.facebook.com/strangefruithiphopera
https://www.instagram.com/strangefruit_hiphopera
FR:AGILITY, 8min., Singapore
Directed by Amanda Tan
Exploring abstract structures within the human form and its movement. The film lenses the body and its form as sculpture; its undulating curves and slopes as landscape; and the skin we live in and shed as texture.
RUINS WITHIN RUINS, 9min., Greece
Directed by Lefteris Parasyris
A group of dancers positions themselves between the ancient and modern ruins of the island of Crete, Greece. Drawing inspiration from its rich heritage, they craft a series of kinetic forms and patterns influenced by folk dances and Minoan frescoes. These installations, whether harmonising with or contrasting against the island’s culture, offer reflections on historical memory and the Cretan identity.
https://www.instagram.com/lefteris.parasyris/
YOU ARE AT THE NATIONAL MUSEUM, 8min., Qatar
Directed by Dimitri Yuri
Anne, an international photographer, is on a work assignment to capture the essence of visiting the National Museum of Qatar for a prestigious online media platform. Feeling overwhelmed by the pressures of work, yet intrigued by the opportunity to document the museum’s treasures, Anne begins to immerse herself in the galleries. But little does she know that her encounter with the museum’s space will captivate her senses and transport her beyond the realm of reality, ultimately transforming her heart and mind.
AT LAKE, 13min,. Canada
Directed by Mistaya Hemingway
At Lake is a surreal meditation on nature and the relationships between movement, landscape and chance. Interpreted through the lens of our current time and shot in Eastern Québec, At Lake is a revisioning of Maya Deren’s iconic 1944 film, At Land. At Lake is driven by the themes of exploration, separation, duplicity and connection.
https://www.instagram.com/mistayahemingway/
https://www.facebook.com/mistaya.hemingway/
STILL. 6min., Peru
Directed by Elias Mujica Checa, Verónica Garrido Lecca, Maria Angela Talavera Tejeda
Six women attempt to move forward as a collective, but their journey seems to bring them back to their starting point. They face a challenge to break free from this state of stagnation, which leads them into a cycle of chaos and harmony. This dance film is a call to reflect on society’s standards of beauty and how much we relate to them.
LAKE OF DREAMS, 4min., Germany
Directed by Axel Werner
A young man suffers from the fixed idea of his dream woman. He tears himself away from his demons and heads towards his vision with the boundless power of desire.
https://lake-of-dreams.art/
https://facebook.com/axel.w.music
https://instagram.com/axel.w.music
MITOTE – SMOKEY MIRROR, 9min., South Korea
Directed by Jana Sturmheit
In today’s world us humans have developed a complex social system of rules and expectations. Children are taught from the day they are born on how they are expected to behave. They are told what is right and wrong, what is possible and what not. That is, by the standards of the children’s parents and other people in their surroundings, in other words the society they grow up in.
https://instagram.com/jaystorm24.mov
NOT FROM HERE, 5min., South Africa
Directed by Oscar Tony O’Ryan, Louise Coetzer
NOT FROM HERE is an ode to the unique South African Karoo landscape. The film follows two visitants, conjured by their circle, as they journey across the barren desert landscapes. Stark contrasts are drawn between the figures in motion, set against the vastness of the otherworldly terrain they encounter. NOT FROM HERE expresses the unfamiliar, in search of acceptance.
http://www.oscaroryan.com/
https://www.facebook.com/oscar.oryan/
https://www.instagram.com/oscaroryan/
amalgaMOTION: We move as one, 4min,. Canada
Directed by Adam Daniel Mezei, Crystal Finn-Dunn
A visually stunning celebration of diverse dance styles fusing into harmony. Captivating choreography, mesmerizing synergy. Prepare for a spectacular journey where cultures unite through dance.
http://amalgamotion.ca/https://instagram.com/amalgamotioncollective
OUT OF THE DARK, 3min., USA
Directed by Alexa Ruggiero, Ashley Carrizo
A screendance film that portrays how certain relationships in ones life can cause turmoil. The process of letting someone go can be freeing while also being an emotional rollercoaster full of sadness, anger, and relief.
https://www.instagram.com/alexabrookephoto_/
https://www.instagram.com/ashcarrizo/
WILDsound Festival 