Contemporary Dance Australia

The ReelDance International Dance on Screen Festival will kick off with its Premiere event in Sydney, May 2008, before touring Australia and New Zealand

ReelDance 2008 is our fifth biannual festival since 2000 celebrating the art of dancefilm. Sitting between the performing arts and film culture, this film festival caters to both dance and film audiences with a focus on screen musicals, music videos and contemporary dance on screen. These three genres cover the breadth and depth of the art form, from the rich cinematic history of the film musical through popular dance forms and experimental video techniques featured in music clips, to the poetics of the world's greatest contemporary choreographers.

Bringing together some of the best dance films and videos from around the world, the 2006 ReelDance Festival attracted a high calibre of individual contributors such as Wim Vandekeybus, Anna Teresa de Keersmaeker, Lloyd Newson, Jonathan Burrows and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and companies such as Ultima Vez, DV8 Dance Theatre, (ex-) Ballet Frankfurt, Black Grace and Les Ballets C. de la B.

Following the success of this exciting and innovative programme, ReelDance 2008 continues to invest in its wide reaching appeal, with the return of a line up of dance films for primary school aged children, the popular showing of Classic Dance Music Videos, and the highlight of the ReelDance Awards Finalists 2008 showcasing the best local work with shorts from Australia and New Zealand.

In 2008, each venue of our 11 city tour will couch the festival within a custom-made program, framing the event with additional free screenings, screen lounges, forums and workshops. What’s more, expanding on the festivals’ already broad scope, and reflecting the ever-progressive nature of dance for screen culture, 2008 will boast an even greater array of contributions including interactive installations, participatory events and live works.

The ReelDance International Dance on Screen Festival is curated from open submissions for both the ReelDance Awards for Australian and New Zealand dancefilm shorts, and the General Program showcasing the very best of international dance for film culture.

FESTIVAL DATES & VENUES:

May 1-11 ACMI / Arts House / Dancehouse Melbourne
May 9-11 Campbelltown Arts Centre Campbelltown
May 11-18 Performance Space @ Carriageworks Sydney
May 23-25 Salamanca Arts Centre Hobart
May 28 - June 1 Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts /STRUT/WAAPA Perth
July 8-12 Noosa Long Weekend Noosa
July 15-16 World Dance Alliance / Ausdance QLD Brisbane
July 27 On Edge Media and Performance Cairns
July 30 NORPA/Byron Cinemas Byron Bay
Aug 22 - 31 Antistatic / Mercury Cinema Adelaide
Sept 25 – Oct 12 The Body Festival of Dance and Physical Theatre Christchurch. NZ

ReelDance website

Dance/Video/Improvisation – Unexpected Encounters
With Katrina McPherson and Simon Fildes

As part of the ReelDance 2008 Festival, Dancehouse has the pleasure of hosting international guest artists; Katrina McPherson and Simon Fildes in a three day Dance/Video/ Improvisation workshop for up to 10 dance filmmakers.

When: May 2 - 4 2008
Where: Dancehouse, 150 Princes St Carlton North 3054

More information

Producer Chunky Move in association with Chequerboard Productions
Directors Gideon Obarzanek, Edwina Throsby
Performers Meaghan McHenry, Sara Black, Alexandra Dillon, Bec Reid, Penelope Bartlau, Ros Warby

Six women imitate their dads’ dancing in a film about fathers as seen through the eyes of their daughters.

Reeldance Award For Best Documentary 2008

Director Thierry de Mey
Choreographer William Forsythe
Performers The Forsythe Dance Company

One Flat Thing, Reproduced is rightly considered as one of William Forsythe's major works in which the virtuosity of the performers rivals the ingenious complexity of the choreography. The dancers take their cues from each other, driving the pace and energy of work. This film by award-winning filmmaker Thierry de Mey adopts a subjective approach, not exhaustive.

Director Anne Linsel
Choreographer Pina Bausch
Performers Tanztheater Wuppertal
Germany (2006: 45min)

An overview of the first lady of dance theatre with footage from most of her major works. The film reflects on the early years, beginning when Bausch took up the post as ballet director in Wuppertal in 1972. She has gone on to develop Tanztheater Wuppertal with her dancers (including Australians Meryl Tankard and Michael Whaites), a new theatre form consisting of dance, music and spoken word. Includes revealing interview footage with Pina and her star dancers.

Director Alain Platel
Various choreographers and performers
Belgium (2006: 55min)

Les Ballets C de la B, one of the most recognized contemporary dance and theatre companies in the world, celebrates their history in this documentary made by founding member and key figure of the collective, Alain Platel, on the occasion of their twentieth anniversary. A groundbreaking approach to documentary filmmaking consisting mainly of performance and rehearsal footage and interviews with company members who have returned to their families far from the company’s base in Ghent.