See “Amongst”

at American Dance Festival, Movies by Movers

Friday, July 8 at 7 pm, The Shed Jazz Club, Durham, NC

and

at the Triskelion Arts Dance Film Feastival

Thursday, July 14, at 7 pm, Triskelion Arts, Brooklyn, NY

“Amongst” draws the audience ever deeper into the world of wild dolphins and features extreme performances of grace in the deep waters of the open ocean by talented dolphin dancers Yuki Kusachi and Kayoko Sawamura.  Set to Po-Chun Wang’s mashup of gamelan and spoken word (excerpted from “Rice Combo“), “Amongst” delivers an immersive experience of a radically different environment and culture. Watching in 3D and surrounded by wild dolphins chattering, squawking, swirling and dancing in ways familiar and unfamiliar, you will discover the glorious disorientation of losing yourself in the dolphins’ world.

This short 3D film premiered as part of our program, “So Close 3D: Dance with Wild Dolphins” in December 2014 in NYC, and was awarded “Best Live Action Film in 3D Theater Session” at the Stereoscopic Displays and Applications XXVII conference in San Francisco in February, 2016. “Amongst” has also screened at the Topanga Film Festival, LA 3D Movie Fest, Dance Films Association Annual Holiday Party, BCN Sports Film Festival, and the New York Japan Cinefest.

The Dolphin Dance Project is looking for partners to help us bring “Amongst” and the entire “So Close 3D: Dance with Wild Dolphins” program of live dance, 2D and 3D films to communities around the United States and beyond.  Please let us know if you are interested, so we can bring you “as close as being there”.

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Come See Dolphin Dance in 3D

on The Big Screen in NYC!

Sunday, December 7th at noon and 2pm

Tickets HERE

We are excited to announce a unique opportunity to see our most recent 3D work projected in a big screen theater!

The program will include a pre-release preview of  Dolphin Dreams* shot by Emmy Award-winning underwater cinematographer Howard Hall with an original score by Grammy Award-winning composer and cellist David Darling.

We will also preview several short 3D films featuring our full cast of beautiful dolphin dancers: Kathleen Fisher, Yuki Kusachi, Jillian Rutledge and Kayoko Sawamura.

Several talented members of our ‘pod’ of NYC dancers – Carly Czach, Elise Knudson and Tim O’Donnell – will grace the stage for a live performance amongst virtual dolphins.

Let’s fill the house! One of the most valuable things you can do to support us right now is to share this event with anyone you think might enjoy the show.

The one hour program will be presented twice:

SO CLOSE 3D: DANCE WITH WILD DOLPHINS

Sunday, December 7th
Screenings at NOON and 2 pm

SVA Theater
333 West 23rd Street

TICKETS are $10 in advance, $15 at the door. FREE for children under 16 when reserved in advance.

*It’s not too late to support the finishing of “Dolphin Dreams”. Even if you can’t join us at this screening, for a donation of $50 or more, you will receive a DVD of the film, when it is completed. Donations can be made at checkout when you purchase your ticket, or at our website, where you can also see a full list of perks. Thank you!

Co-produced with Dance Films Association, with support from Artist as Citizen.

So Close 3D is made possible in part with public funds from the Fund for Creative Communities, supported by New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature and administered by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, as well as funds from the Manhattan Community Arts Fund, supported by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and administered by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. LMCC.net

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“Surge” is a single take, a 60-second screen dance that highlights the internal experience of dancing underwater as we hold our breath.  One minute is the average length of our active dives.

“Surge”

Performed by Chisa Hidaka and Jillian Rutledge
Underwater Videography by Benjamin Harley
Music by Loren Dempster

Premieres at Topanga Film Festival:  July 18th, 2014

Filmmaker Notes:

Dance improvisation skills are essential to the collaborative work we do with each other and with wild dolphins, but the first requirement for dancing underwater is to master the techniques for being comfortable in the deep ocean while holding your breath, which is an art in itself: the art of free diving.  Jillian Rutledge, featured in this film, embodies this technique so beautifully.  She is an instructor with Apnea Academy, and her insight and sensitivity have enhanced the capabilities of our entire team of dolphin dancers.

“Surge” is a special film because it showcases how much the movement of the camera can contribute to the viewer’s experience of ‘participating in the dance just by watching’; it co-creates the choreography.  It was this video clip, shot in 2012, through which we discovered the approach we continue to develop.  The camera is a dancer, and the choreography is fully integrated into the way it shoots this duet, which offers a very immediate experience of what it is like down there – participating in the surge of forces so much bigger than ourselves – weightless, effortlessly revolving and spiraling, tuning to the movements of another.

When I observe wild dolphins, I am still always inspired. To me, what makes their interactions so dance-like is how hydrodynamic and communicative they are. So we want to embody a dance form that is hydrodynamic and communicative, too. In our training and rehearsals, we are always looking for ways to work with (rather than against) the supportiveness and resistance we find at different depths of the ocean, and fine tuning our capability to ‘listen’ to and interact with each other through our bodies and movements and eye contact. It isn’t easy: we are always exhausted and freezing by the end of our rehearsal sessions. But we also feel a kind of bliss, having focused so intently on our harmonious connections to the ocean and to each other.

It is our continued hope that our work will inspire increased protection and respect for all dolphins and their habitats.  With thanks to the dolphins, our fellow dancers, and everyone who so generously supports our work!

Visit our website to learn more about the Dolphin Dance Project, and see more of our videos on our YouTube channel.

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At the Colorado Environmental Film Festival, where we (coincidentally) premiered on the same day, we received a second screening at the closing night session due to popular demand.

At both events, our film was recognized for its beautiful cinematography and moving images. We enjoyed responses like ‘very cool!’ and  ‘amazingly beautiful’ from our fellow filmmakers.

One Danish dancer/actor and his director said, “It is a really brilliant idea for a film, so interesting to have dancers and dolphins creating something together.”

We are more inspired than ever to share more dances and more of the context that illuminates how profound these interactions with wild dolphins are.

Thank you so much for your support!

And remember…if you didn’t catch it on the big screen, “Together” is available for download and on DVD – http://dolphin-dance.org/together

Please forward the link to any of your friends who might enjoy this award winning short.  Every download is a meaningful contribution to our future work.

Congratulations as well to our cast of Spinner Dolphins!  They are the real stars. Let’s work together to make sure all dolphins continue to thrive in the oceans we share with them!

P.S.  There were many excellent documentaries at the Colorado Environmental Film Festival.  Award winners, with messages that we support, include ‘Play Again’ about how important it is for children to experience the natural world in order to care for it and to be healthy, and ‘Milking the Rhino’ which explores conservation strategies for encouraging local communities in Africa to protect the wild life that lives among them.

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