3. Dwelling in time → Moving through space
處於時域，動破空間。
“Dance, the movement of the body in a rhythmic way, usually to music and within a given space, for the purpose of expressing an idea or emotion, releasing energy, or simply taking delight in the movement itself. …'' This pops up with a basic Google search. But every phrase and line can be opened up to embrace what is marked non-dance. And what about the permutational combination of some of these elements? Rhythmic body movement without music? Dance across different spaces? Defining a space by how one dances? Could a place be the result of how we move in it? Conserving energy as much as releasing? Stillness as a kind of movement? This session contains several video essays initiated as dance videos or by dance professionals. They are liberating! We should all dance.
舞蹈是甚麼？誰可以跳舞？我們一起舞步。我們都舞吧舞吧！
盤踞當下，從這裡向前。日常的作息，日間的瑣務，拉闊，調以時序和秩序。身體處於時域，動破空間。身體，就是那結連萬物的起點。
幾個起點為「舞蹈錄像」或由編舞跳舞者發起的錄像的作品，打開「舞」的窄門。
- Dance, Bolero, Loneliness, Living space, Daily life
- 舞蹈, 波萊羅, 孤單, 生活的空間, 日常生活
Jurors’ notes:
I like this work, especially when I notice the performer is not a professional dancer. The video is well shot, which highlights the precision of movements. It reminds me of Yvonne Rainer’s trio A, which opens up the act of dancing which could just be an immediate abstraction of daily actions by giving them rhythm, a sense of temporal measure. Watching his video makes me want to dance. (Linda Lai)
Simple and beautiful. The narration is very loosely bound, yet the action design is “silly” in ways that sustain my interest. And it is good that I didn't feel any self-pity which is common in works about a single individual in quarantine. (WONG Fei-pang)
- Latin dance, Synchronization, Time, Partial, Relationship
- 拉丁舞, 同步, 時間 , 局部, 關係
Jurors’ notes:
I have watched a lot of dance videos, and there’s a kind of standard approach emerging. I like this piece for its restrictive frontal camera work, self monologue and reflexiveness. The piece is overall very artsy. Rather than a dance being documented on camera, we see a dance choreographed and performed for the camera as a work of video. (Linda Lai)
I have learned that people’s general impression of Latin dance is that it is rather out-dated or old-fashioned, compared to modern dance. Lee gives us another perspective, which I found quite fascinating. One more thing. It is not uncommon that when dancers view their own dance on video, they find the camera shots not wide enough. From this perspective, this work manifests a subversive approach and distinguishes itself from most other dance videos. (WONG Fei-pang)
However, I do not enjoy the ending when the two dancers are disclosed to be a couple. I should say that I rarely watch dance videos and yet I enjoy this one’s pacing. (Hoi Wong)
- Journey
- 旅程
Director 導演: KT Yau 邱加希
Video Editor 影片剪接: LEE Wai-shing 李偉盛
Yau received the Award for Young Artist at the Hong Kong Arts Development Awards 2018; the same year, she also received the Emerging Choreographer Award at the Hong Kong Dance Awards. Her work Unmixed in the New Force in Motion series presented by LCSD and Confine presented by Taikwun received the Outstanding Small Venue Production Award at the Hong Kong Dance Awards 2018 and 2019. Both works were nominated for Outstanding Choreography.
LEE Wai-shing (Video Editor)
Jurors’ notes:
There are only 3 works in this round that are self-classified as “documentation.” ... As a video documentation, it seeks to have the audience immersed in the event.
I didn't take it as a dance video. How Should I put it? Most other dance videos I've watched before feel distant to me and there’s always a barrier I can’t cross. To watch it on a monitor, I feel the dance movement will vanish in front of the camera. However I think this work gives me a dense sensation of movement. (Winnie Yan)
That’s probably because we don't need extra knowledge to appreciate the dance movement which derives directly from swimming. I think this resonates with the thing you said, of seeing the movement.
But we could have habitually just focused on the narrative of movement and neglected other details, such as the street view and the pedestrians' reactions. The camera work does carefully include subtle movements of swimming that we don't normally see. (Linda Lai)
I am not entirely sure how to draw the distinction between a dance video and the documentation of a dance. Either way, I think the work is obviously ending with kids on the beach laughing.
I gather that this work stands out for its being site-specific. It wouldn’t have been possible in Hong Kong. (Hoi Wong)
It is pure, pure joy. It is rare to see a work with such simplicity and without being heavy-handed even though there’s a critical dimension, obviously. (WONG Fei-pang)
I don’t like video works that end with making selfies with children. The work feels like consuming the passersby. I would have appreciated it much more if the video had ended with a real dive into the ocean. (John Chow)