HANGING OUT WITH THE DIRECTOR OF FURIOUS BEAUTY

After backing it as Kickstarter project, I was so psyched to get my own copy of Furious Beauty, a film about the dance company Versa-Style.  (See my post about the film HERE.)

I was so moved by the film that, after watching it, I thought "I should really call the director and tell him how amazing this is!"  I didn't know how to reach him, so I sent this tweet:

Eleanor Traubman @creativetimes   Just watched and was blown away by @furious_beauty, the documentary about Versa-Style dance company So deeply moved! furiousbeautymovie.com       04:58 PM - 18 Jun 13

A day or two later, I received a friendly email from Calvin Leung, Director of Furious Beauty, letting me know he would be in NYC that weekend to screen his film. Talk about good karma!
During their visit to The Big Apple, I met up with Calvin and also with dancer Daniel Norwood - aka DSoul - to talk about dance, community, and a whole lot more. 

Calvin on Dance

Calvin observes that the dance community, built around the greater good and not just around the individual, has a sort of surrogate family structure that involves lots of mentorship. "To create a family structure," he shared, "you have to make a conscious to look after someone.  Our culture is propagated by sharing it with more people on a one-to-one basis."

Calvin also speaks to the creative aspect of dance, noting that, like other art forms, it's "interpersonal" and "can cut through our analytical side, which is important in an increasingly digital world."

Daniel on Dance

Daniel, who has been dancing for 3 and a half years, is grateful to the people and classes at Homeland (a neighborhood cultural center in Long Beach) who helped him "get past a barrier of feeling awkward, [of] being the white boy who couldn't dance." In dance, he is constantly challenged to expand his comfort zone. When he first started dancing, peers at Daniel's college thought that what he was doing was strange.  His mom, however, was supportive.  And one of the things working in his favor was his familiarity with discipline: Daniel had a history of being a competitive golfer."

Notes Daniel about dance "It brings us all to the moment; unites us in the moment; connects us to the people around us; connects us with ourselves and with the music.

Dance on Film

Toward the end of our time together, I ask Calvin and Daniel about what dance films inspired them
Daniel appreciated RIZE, a movie about some of the original Krumpers, for the freestyle and non-repetitive aspect of the movements.  Calvin, as someone who makes dance films, noted Dirty Dancing for the way the dancers conveyed affection through their hands.  He also treasures mime Robert Shields' Celebration of Imagination, sharing that  "Shields does what I want to do as a dancer, which is to own the moment."

FURIOUS BEAUTY: AN AMAZING FILM ABOUT THE EVOLUTION OF A HIP-HOP DANCE COMPANY

Last year, I supported a couple of dance-based Kickstarter Projects.  One was the Ladies of Hip-Hop Festival, the other was Furious Beauty.  Furious Beauty is a film created by Calving Leung about the non-profit hip hop dance company and organization, Versa-Style.

It took me a while to sit down the with Kickstarter copy of the movie which Calvin sent to me in the mail.  And when I finally did watch it a few weeks ago, I was totally blown away by it.

In Furious Beauty, Calvin documents the history of the dance company Versa-Style, as well as the stories of its individual members.  One of the compelling aspects of this film is the way it follows the evolution of a dance pieceabout the fears of each of the dancers and the way they help each other face these fears.

Given the heavy conditioning that men get hit with to not show fear or really any kind of vulnerability, t was especially interesting to see how the men of Versa-Style came together to talk openly about their fears and then create a dance out of those conversations and feelings.

The other thing about this film that left a big impression with me was how fiercely its leaders, Jackie Lopez (aka Miss Funk) and Leigh Foaad (aka Breeze-lee), mentor the members of Versa-Style, helping both the individuals and the group to move forward together not just as performers but as people with all kinds of strengths and struggles.

If you are an actor, dancer, choreographer, educator, leader of a nonprofit, or any kind of arts administrator, I highly recommend this film.   More info about it can be found HERE.

Here's how Versa-Style describes who they are:

Versa Style is a dance ensemble that consists of young, committed and conscientious artists representing the diversity and beautiful complexity of Los Angeles.

We create highly energetic work that fuses dances that are culturally significant to our community. These forms include Hip-Hop styles such as 90s Hip-Hop, House, Popping, Locking, Whacking and Boogaloo, and Afro- Latin styles such as Salsa, Merengue, Cumbia and Afro-Cuban to name a few. As a reaction to the widespread media misrepresentation of these dance forms, Versa-Style specifically aims to perform for the youth of Los Angeles to instill the roots, history, and social and political issues surrounding the art of our generation.

Hip-Hop breaks color lines by creating a forum where people come together for a common passion rather than grouping themselves by race or socio-economic backgrounds. Versa-Style demonstrates freedom of expression, freedom of individuality, hard work, self-discipline and dedication to the form.