Films.Dance MATCH, Featuring 46 Dancers Across 20 Cities Worldwide, Streaming Now

Films.Dance, a groundbreaking global film series produced by and under the creative direction of LA-based Jacob Jonas The Company continues with MATCH, the single most expansive collaboration in the 15-film series.

Match features dancers from 20 countries moving against the backdrops of their home cities across the globe - including Joffrey Ballet artists Dara Holmes and Edson Barbosa in Chicago - with original choreography by Emily Kikta, Jamar Roberts, Oliver Starpov, Peter Walker, and Xin Ying. The score was composed by New York-based composer and producer Jay Wadley, known for his work in Charlie Kaufman's I'm Thinking of Ending Things and twice featured in IndieWire's 10 Best Scores of the Year (2016, 2020). Match is directed and edited by Emily Kikta and Peter Walker, founders of kw creative and dancers in New York City Ballet.

The 46 dancers in the film represent some of the world's most celebrated classical and contemporary companies: Alonzo King LINES Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ballet Hispanico, Ballet Vlaanderen, BalletX, Boston Ballet, Dresden Semperoper Ballett, Dutch National, Greek National Ballet, Hannover Ballet, Jacob Jonas The Company, Johannesburg Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Martha Graham Dance Company, Miami City Ballet, National Ballet of Canada, Netherlands Dance Theater, New York City Ballet, Oklahoma City Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, Royal New Zealand Ballet, Scottish Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet, Teatro Colón, Theatro Municipal de São Paulo, and Washington Ballet.

One of the most ambitious international dance film projects ever undertaken, Films.Dance engages more than 150 artists from 52 cities in 25 countries, culminating in 15 short films that have been shot during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Films.Dance is being made available to the public at no charge. Two of Los Angeles' foremost cultural organizations-the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts and the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts-have teamed up with Chicago's Joan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater to present Films.Dance.

Through non-traditional collaborations across cultures and continents, and led by the vision of Jacob Jonas, the series connects the perspectives of diverse artists from a range of disciplines, dance genres, abilities, and experiences. Filmed in locations ranging from Amsterdam, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, and London, to Los Angeles, New York, Nigeria, and Spain-Films.Dance exists at the intersection of dance, music, fashion, and film.

All films premiere for free at 9 a.m. PST at Films.Dance, on Instagram on the @films.dance account, the Films.Dance Facebook page, and individual sites of the three co-presenters.

The project is presented in partnership with Somewhere Magazine and co-presented by the Joan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, and Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts/CSUN.

To post a comment, you must register and login.