Dance


BELLA
BELLA

Dance  American Studies  American History  Cinema Studies  Cultural Studies  Directed by Women  Performing Arts  2024 

Bella, is about the life, influence and impact of California-based artist and activist Bella Lewitzky. Designated one of America's Irreplaceable Dance Treasures by the Dance Heritage Coalition Lewitzky’s life demonstrates how a “uniquely Californian” artist with vision and tenacity can change the lives of her fellow citizens.

HÍBRIDOS, THE SPIRITS OF BRAZIL
HÍBRIDOS, THE SPIRITS OF BRAZIL

2019  Anthropology  Cultural Studies  Cinema Studies  Dance  Directed by Women  Indigenous Studies  Latin-American Studies  Music  Religion & Spirituality 

HÍBRIDOS, THE SPIRITS OF BRAZIL is an ethnomusicological journey into the sacred culture of Brazil, from Roman Catholic to Ubanda and candomblé--mixures of African traditions with Catholicism.

INTO THE HINTERLANDS
INTO THE HINTERLANDS

2018  Anthropology  Cinema Studies  Dance  Directed by Women  Sensory Ethnography Lab 

The Detroit-based performance ensemble, The Hinterlands, practice a form of ecstatic training which they see as a provocation towards the unknown. The “hinterlands” evokes an unknown space both physical and imaginary whose mystery is its very source of generation and from which true creativity emerges. Their practice is one of ecstatic play, of finding the edge of one’s balance, and the limits of one’s body.

WHIPPING ZOMBIE
WHIPPING ZOMBIE

2018  African Studies  Anthropology  Dance  Music  Short Films  Cinema Studies 

In a remote Haitian village there is a dance with slaves and masters: the whipping zombie ritual. To trance-inducing music played by rara bands, men whip and fight until they die and are reborn in the infinite cycle.



DANCING WITH MARIA
DANCING WITH MARIA

2018  Dance  Latin-American Studies  Disabilities  Education  Women's Studies 

Maria is an elderly Argentinian dancer. In her Buenos Aires studio, she welcomes dancers from all walks of life, including women and men with physical and mental impairments, and arranges integrated dance groups.


GHOSTS OF OUR FOREST
GHOSTS OF OUR FOREST

African Studies  Music  Anthropology  Indigenous Studies  2017  Dance  Environmental Studies  Performing Arts  Loud Roar Productions 

Forcefully removed from their ancestral home by the Ugandan government to protect the endangered gorilla population, the indigenous Batwa people start a music club in hopes to preserve their culture through song and story.

BAM150
BAM150

Performing Arts  Art History  New York City  Dance  Music  American History  2013 

A fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the staging of a major operatic production, Verdi's masterpiece, "La Traviata," starring world-famous French coloratura soprano Natalie Dessay and directed by the celebrated Jean-Francois Sivardier.

DANCEWEB
DANCEWEB

Dance  Performing Arts  Education  Children & Young Adult  Directed by Women 

Danceweb is an intimate, rewarding film that gives a unique understanding of the world of contemporary dance by following three young dancers.

DANCE TO LIVE
DANCE TO LIVE

Performing Arts  American Studies  African-American Studies  Dance  Directed by Women 

The documentary tells the personal stories of the dancers at Philadanco, the Philadelphia-based African-American modern dance company, with sincere testimonials from young dancers.

GIRL BEAT: POWER OF THE DRUM
GIRL BEAT: POWER OF THE DRUM

Women's Studies  Spanish Language  Sociology  Music  Latino Studies  Dance  Children & Young Adult  Directed by Women 

This video profiles members of Banda Dida, an all-girl drumming and vocal group in Salvador, Brazil.

RESISTENCIA: HIP HOP IN COLOMBIA
RESISTENCIA: HIP HOP IN COLOMBIA

Spanish Language  Music  Latino Studies  Dance  Children & Young Adult 

An unusual look at the current political and economic crisis in Colombia—including a decades-long civil war, a rampant drug trade, kidnapping for ransom, and financial scandal at the highest levels of the government—through the eyes of young Colombians, in particular the country’s finest rap musicians, DJs and breakdancers

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PANORAMA

Dance  Latin-American Studies  Performing Arts  Spanish Language 

The historical collage of Cuban Dance forms, including contradanza, danzon, son, mambo, cha-cha-cha, and culminating in an exuberant carnival celebration, features dancers from Cuba's famed El Conjunto Nacional de Danza Moderna.

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THE DANCE

Dance  Cultural Studies 

Beginning with cultures of prehistory and primitive dance forms, this film depicts the concert forms of native dancing in the works of Katherine Dunham. The second part of the film deals with folk dances of more than fifteen nations.

PROM NIGHT IN KANSAS CITY
PROM NIGHT IN KANSAS CITY

American Studies  LGBTQ  Human Sexuality  Psychology & Psychiatry  Family Relations  Children & Young Adult  Dance  Sociology  Directed by Women 

Filmmaker Hali Lee grew up in suburban Kansas City, where she remembers her own high school prom as a drag. In later years, however, she became obsessed with trying to understand the appeal of this quintessentially American tradition—was it the pageantry, the poignant pretensions of teenagers dressing up as ‘adults,’ the myth of prom as a pagan coming-of-age ritual, or the ersatz memories?

PUPPETRY: WORLDS OF IMAGINATION
PUPPETRY: WORLDS OF IMAGINATION

Performing Arts  Music  Dance  Art History 

This documentary surveys the revolutionary new developments in American puppet theater, profiling many of puppetry’s most imaginative contemporary artists.

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SONGOLOLO: VOICES OF CHANGE

Sociology  Music  Literature  Dance  Cultural Studies  African Studies  Directed by Women 

Examines the role of black resistance to apartheid in South Africa through a look at two of the nation's leading cultural activists and popular performers--poet Mzwakhe Mbuli and writer/ performer Gcina Mhlophe.

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COMING OUT

American Studies  Dance  Sociology 

This cinema-verite documentary examines one of America's most exclusive and enduring social traditions--the debutante ball. The film focuses on the National Debutante Cotillion at the Washington Hilton, following the preparations of Jill Schweitzer, one of the new generation of debs who see beyond the traditional ritual to the valuable career and business connections that can be made.

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THE PRIMAL MIND

Anthropology  Architecture  Cultural Studies  Dance  Native American Studies 

Written and hosted by Jamake Highwater, a world renowned author on Indian culture, this film examines the differences between Native American and Western cultures, including their contrasting views of nature, time, space, art, architecture, and dance.

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REEL IRISH

Dance  Irish Studies  Performing Arts  Women's Studies  Immigration 

This video examines the world of amateur Irish dancing, featuring interviews with Irish women in Great Britain who have passed on this cultural tradition within their own families and the wider Irish immigrant community.

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DOING JUSTICE

Criminal & Law  Dance  Psychology & Psychiatry  Children & Young Adult 

Examines America's juvenile justice system, focusing on three young people in trouble with the law throughout their adolescence.

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