Reality TBD
an immersive film + dance production exploring the construction of reality
Premiered at KANEKO as part of The Movement Series | September 21 + 22, 2018
Through movement, film, original music, and interactive lighting elements, tbd. dance collective and filmmaker Nik Fackler transform a shared space into an experience of shifting realities and collective consciousness – examining the line between audience and performer. The film, Waiting for Reality - which premiered at the event, seeks to explore how the perceptions of others in our shared reality construct our individual realities.
In order to make audience members feel enveloped by the production, artists craft an intimate setting using pre-programmed lighting cues, a limited amount of seating, and wall panels to enclose the space. As the film begins to play, dancers surround the audience on all sides, performing choreography in direct conversation with the narrative onscreen.
Waiting for Reality is an intensely engaging dance/film experience with an open-ended narrative told through expressive movement of the human form and deft manipulation of cinematic tools
Photograph by Harrison Martin
Photograph by Harrison Martin
The Film
Waiting for Reality is a movement based narrative short film, examining the periods of time in a person's life that formed their identity.
Directed + Edited by Nik Fackler
Director of Photography | Ben Drickey
Producer | Patty Dillon + Kat Fackler
Choreography | tbd. dance collective
The Performance
Reality TBD features a site-specific, live performance by tbd. dance collective in which the three act structure, and choreography from the film are reimagined for gallery spaces. Dancers move throughout and around audience members as they watch the film, thus breaking the barrier between the viewer and performer.
12 midi controlled LED lights are pre programmed to instantly change the color of the space to match the colors on screen, seemingly initiated by the movement of the dancers.
The purpose of the live performance being viewed in conjunction with the film, is to give the audience an interdisciplinary perspective on movement and story. Though the choreography and conceptual elements of the performance are drawn directly from the film, the overall meaning and storyline are left undisclosed. The audience is encouraged to create their own stories and draw meaning from the emotional representation within the movement and the film.
Reality Tbd., the premiere of Waiting for Reality, featured an introduction choreographed by Nichol Mason Lazenby. Audience members were introduced to the unique performance setting through a 12 minute choreographic work which led them through the space, and to their seats just as the film began.
Photograph by Ben Semisch, Courtesy of KANEKO
Photograph by Ben Semisch, Courtesy of KANEKO
