Cinedans Short Docs: When Dance Takes Over

In these short documentaries, we follow communities and people that find love and sanctuary in dance. An unlikely ballet school in Lagos, a community of dancers with disabilities in Spain and an indigenous queer man in Australia. All in search for self-discovery and solidarity.

In My Skin (Director: Sándor M. Salas | ES | 2022 | 14’ [Dutch Première])

Far from homogenizing parameters, flamenco uses the subversive power of art to enhance the diversity of bodies on stage. Disability is no longer a limit, but a creative starting point.

Then Comes the Body (Director: Jacob Krupnick | Choreographer: Daniel Ajala | NG, US | 2003 | 15’ [Dutch Première])

When a video of kids dancing in the rain goes viral, it brings global attention to an unlikely ballet school outside Lagos, Nigeria. Now, Daniel Ajala – who learned ballet over YouTube – is training students to perform on the world stage.

Every Step Counts | Takano Yonen (Director: Andreas Guzman | HK, SAR | 2023 | 4’)

This short portrait takes an inside look at the artistic inspiration and motivations of Takano Yonen, a Japanese soloist member of the Hong Kong Ballet. As he dances through urban and natural surroundings, he meditates on the influence of his cultural background and his approach to the ritual and language of dance.

And Me, I'm Dancing Too (Director: Mohammad Valizadegan | CZ, DE | 2023 | 20’ [Dutch Première])

Saba, an Iranian girl, is a dancer. She wants to be indifferent to her surroundings and manifests this self-being and freedom with her body. She is in love with the art of dancing, the art of letting go and living away from conventional bonds. But this art of being is forbidden in an ultimately religious state that ignores the very basic human rights. The film is an honest portrait of the daily oppression women have to deal with in Iran towards the path to freedom.