Dance and the Documentary: Chantal Akerman's One Day Pina Asked...

To celebrate the recent release by Icarus Films of one of Chantal Akerman's lesser-known films, One Day Pina Asked... (Belgium, 1983), the Department of Cinema Studies in partnership with Dance Film Association will host a screening and panel discussion on the topic of Dance and the Documentary.

Akerman's film follows German choreographer Pina Bausch with her company Tanzteater Wuppertal on a five-week tour in Europe. Close-ups and static shots present an intimate journey through Bausch's world, as Akerman withholds voice-over narration and lets the images speak for themselves. Shot by Babette Mangolte, Akerman's frequent collaborator and prominent documenter of New York's downtown dance scene, One Day Pina Asked... collects the gestures of everyday life, lingering on details like a hand buttoning a shirt, high heels walking across the floor or a tear rolling down a cheek.

Panelists:

Allyson Green, Dean of Tisch School of the Arts, New York University
Antonia Lant, Chair of the Department of Cinema Studies, NYU
Paul Galando, Director of Dance and New Media at NYU
Brighid Greene, Programmer at Dance Films Association

Programmer and Moderator: Sylvie Vitaglione, NYU Cinema Studies