13th Annual Dance Media Film Festival Kicks Off This Weekend in Downtown L.A.

Celebrating the vibrant art of dance, Dance Camera West presents the 13th Annual Dance Media Film Festival, a public event incorporating dance explored through film, live performance, and architectural art. Several free live dance performances, an outdoor movie screening, a family-fun Dance-Along, Lester Horton Dance Awards ceremony, and over 20 shorts and long-form films and documentaries to be screened during the festival taking place in downtown Los Angeles today, June 6 and June 7, 8, and 13, 2014.

Venues include The Music Center, Grand Park, REDCAT, The Museum of Contemporary Art, and Union Station. All outdoor events are free to the public. This year's theme of "Restructure" includes a large-scale "fast-formal" sculpture created specifically for the festival by artist Gustavo Godoy and co-commissioned by The Music Center, making its debut with a live dance performance with LA's own BODYTRAFFIC dance company. In addition, a special commission by Grand Park of an adaptation by L.A. Contemporary Dance Company of a celebrated work will be performed live in the park and the inaugural CalArts@ Dance Camera West Emerging Artists Competition where the winning college and high school films will receive $10,000 in cash and scholarship prizes. Selected films will be screened at the 13th Annual Dance Media Film Festival.

The multi-disciplinary festival promises to offer something for everyone showcasing many forms of dance including modern, post modern, world, tap, Dance Theater, ballet, hip-hop and practically all dance that has been captured on film in a way that is of quality and essential value. The 13th Annual Dance Media Film Festival is funded in part by the LA Country Arts Commission, LA Department of Cultural Affairs, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Dance Camera West aspires to awaken and infuse the public mainstream with a desire for critical creative programming. The vision of DCW is to present the visual language of dance on screen in a way that stretches the imagination and changes the way we think about dance.

For more information, and to purchase tickets, visit www.DanceCameraWest.org.

13th Annual Dance Media Film Festival Schedule:

Friday, June 6

BODYTRAFFIC/Gustavo Godoy Architectural Art, Live Performance - 7:30 p.m.; Free
The Music Center Plaza, Grand Ave between Temple and 2nd

Opening Night International Short Films - 8:00 p.m.; $15
Eva and Marc Stern Grand Hall, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
The Music Center, 135 North Grand Ave
- Today's the Day (USA, 2013)), 14:00
- Snap Into It (USA, 2014), 3:32
- Sergei Polunin: The Fragile Balance (England, 2013), 12:00
- Pas (USA, 2013), 3:12
- Demand For Love (Norway, 2012), 5:00
- Homegoings: A Dance (USA), 5:00
- Sonata (FRANCE, 2013); 11:00
- ICOSAHEDRONIC (Netherlands, 2012), 1:15
- Adelaars/Eagles (Slovakia, 2013), 9:29
- Rooms (USA, 2013), 5:58
- Angsters (Los Angeles, USA, 2013), 7:11
- Drop the Game - Flume & Chet Faker (Australia & USA), 4:10
- YLYK Super Slow Motion (Singapore, Japan, S. Korea, USA, 2013), 4:10
- Filmmakers Q&A and no-host bar to follow

Saturday, June 7

BODYTRAFFIC/Gustavo Godoy Architectural Art - 2:00 p.m.; Free
Live Performance,The Music Center Plaza, Grand Ave between Temple & 1st

International Dance Films - 2:30 p.m.: $12 (MOCA admission)
Ahmanson Auditorium, The Museum of Contemporary Art, 250 South Grand Ave
- Swift (Australia, 2016) 14:30, by Ros Warby
- Michio Ito Pioneering Dancer-Choreographer (USA, 2013) 21:20; by Bonnie Oda Homsey
- Globe Trot: Crowd-Sourced Filmmaking and Collaborating from Afar (USA & 22 Countries, 2013) 30:00; Presentation by Mitchell Rose
- Free 2 Be Me (USA, 2013) 32:00 by Jeannette Godoy
- All This Can Happen (UK, 2012) 50:00; by Siobhan Davies & David Hinton
- Filmmakers' Q&A to follow

Site-specific adaptation of L.A. Contemporary Dance Company's Prite Oef Stringh
Commissioned by Grand Park, Live Sunset Performance - 7:00 p.m.; Free
Located between Temple & 1st, from The Music Center to City Hall

Lester Horton Dance Awards, Grand Park - 8:00 p.m.
Located between Temple & 1st, from The Music Center to City Hall
- Each year, the Dance Resource Center presents the Lester Horton Dance Awards devoted to celebrating Southern California's dance community and those who keep it thriving. The Horton Awards recognize advocates, educators, artists, presenters, funders, and other community members who advance the field of dance and enhance the diversity and vibrancy of our community.

Outdoor Screenings, Grand Park - 8:30 pm.; Free
Located between Temple & 1st, from The Music Center to City Hall
- Beneath Our Own Immensity (USA, 2013) 10:05
- Miss Hill: Making Dance Matter (USA, 2014), 80:00 documentary; the inspiring and unknown story of Martha Hill, a visionary who fought against great odds to make dance a legitimate art form in America.

Sunday, June 8

BODYTRAFFIC/Gustavo Godoy Architectural Art - 2:00 p.m.; Free
Live performance, The Music Center Plaza, Grand Ave between Temple & 1st

Afternoon Program - REDCAT; 2:30 p.m.; $15
631 W. 2nd Street

YouTube Choreographers Discussion
- Tony Testa, Director/Choreographer (Moderator); Vincent Paterson, Director / Choreographer (Michael Jackson, Madonna); John Chu, Director (Creator of Ds2dio, LXD, GI Joe); Ian Eastwood, Director/Choreographer (YouTube sensation- 300,000 subscribers); Sponsored by DANCEAMATIC: a global platform that aspires to empower, support, and unite the global dance community through dance, film, and social media. The panel discussion will focus on the new wave of content creators who are sharing their work primarily on YouTube and other social media. Featured Screenings: Josh Killacky/Let Me Love You, Tim Milgram/Jammin, Alvin de Castro and Frace Mercado/Euphoria, Stewart Maclennon/You Know You Like It.

Screenings
- Etereas (Mexico, 2013) 3:52
- Flying Bodies (Japan, 2013), 78:00 Documentary; Q&A with Sochi Olympics Choreographer Daniel Esralow; the film follows the one night only performance of Aomori Men's Rhythmic Gymnastics Team collaborated with the world renowned fashion designer, Issey Miyake and their behind-the-scene effort.

Evening Program - REDCAT; 7:00 p.m.; $15
631 W. 2nd Street

Screenings
- Body Without a Brain (Indonesia & USA, 2014), 6:30
- UPAJ: Improvise (USA & India, 2013) 60:00; Directed by Hoku Uchiyama; Choreography & Performances by Chitresh Das and Jason Samuels Smith. A riveting behind the scenes documentary chronicling the birth and journey of India Jazz Suites, the ground breaking collaboration between Indian Classical Dance Icon, Chitresh Das and Tap Star, Jason Samuels Smith. Their unlikely meeting and collaboration is now a phenomenon, the world over. Q&A to follow with the performers.

DCW Awards and $10,000 CalArts@ Dance Camera West Emerging Artists Competition Awards Ceremony

Friday, June 13

3rd Annual Dance-A- Long, Union Station - Time TBA; Free
Union Station, 800 North Alameda Street
- Dance Camera West and Los Angeles Film Festival continue their partnership and present the 3rd Annual Dance-A-Long and movie screening. Bring your dancing shoes and your friends and family for a fun dance lesson prior to the movie!

Dance Camera West (DCW) is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and developing the vibrant art of dance and dance media. DCW connects diverse cultures and environments through its exploration of dance on screen, bringing hundreds of challenging and provocative films to Los Angeles from around the globe, effectively bridging the gap between the uniquely influential Los Angeles film community and the significant local dance populace. Even more importantly, Dance Camera West utilizes the accessible nature of dance as a non-verbal art form to reach across cultural, geographic, and socio-economic divides by making a special effort to engage a wide range of Los Angeles audiences of varying ethnicities and interests, offering everyone a chance to experience the thought-provoking thrill of dance media.

Artist Gustavo Godoy's large-scale sculptural installations are site-responsive, informed by both the surrounding environment and the body's potential relation to the work. Made of industrial materials such as plywood, Plexiglas, and florescent lights, their dynamic constructions invite a physical experience-- for one to climb, sit on, and even walk through. In his collaboration with BODYTRAFFIC and Dance Camera West, Godoy's sculpture at the plaza of the Music Center will act as a structural armature, an object specifically purposed for dance movement, with built-in ramps and passageways that the dancers will interact with and perform on. Many of Godoy's architectural sculptures are made largely with materials recycled from his other artworks. In concert with the "Restructure" theme of this year's festival, the new sculpture will utilize pieces that were originally part of Fast-formal Object: Flayed White, the artist's monumental work formerly installed at the Wexner Center for the Arts. The site will thus be activated by the dancers' interaction with the sculpture, giving the audience a fresh appreciation of the space and the relationship between sculptural form and the human body.

BODYTRAFFIC is a non-profit repertory dance company that thrives in Los Angeles. The company recruits great talent from around the globe to create world-class contemporary dance in the city of Angels. BODYTRAFFIC's growing repertory is vibrant, inspiring, accessible, and provoking to both new audiences and experienced dance enthusiasts. Born from the sheer love of dance, BODYTRAFFIC's spirited environment is flourishing because of its dedication, passion, and exquisite talent.

Los Angeles Contemporary Dance Company (LACDC) began as a business plan in an arts management class at the University of Southern California. Michelle Mierz (Executive Director), then an entrepreneurial business major in the Marshall School of Business, and Kate Hutter (Artistic Director), a Theatrical Design major and independent choreographer studying in the School of Theatre, were paired to prepare a final project; a non-profit dance company serving the Los Angeles area. With the plan drafted and a passionate team to support it, the project grew to become the realized dream that it is today. While pursuing their independent career paths and further education, these young entrepreneurs were laying the foundation for LACDC to take root in its first season, fall 2006. The successful reception of The Reveal, the company's debut concert at Highways Performance Space in July 2005, took them to the next level of making their business plan a reality and producing dance as L.A.'s newest resident dance company, LACDC.

Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center is one of the leading presenters of dance on the West Coast. The celebrated series offers significant works by prestigious ballet and contemporary dance artists from around the world. Entering its second decade, Dance at The Music Center continues to be a powerful commissioning force through the support of new works and artists-in-residence projects by today's most influential companies and choreographers. Performances take place throughout The Music Center, from the historic Dorothy Chandler Pavilion to the iconic Walt Disney Concert Hall, providing the ideal setting for distinct and inspiring dance experiences. For more information, visit www.MusicCenter.org.

A vibrant outdoor gathering place, Grand Park is a beautiful public park for the entire community in Los Angeles County. With expansive green space for gatherings large and small, Grand Park celebrates the county's cultural vitality and is host to community events, cultural experiences, holiday celebrations, and many other activities that engage and attract visitors from all communities. The 12-acre Grand Park stretches from The Music Center on the west to City Hall on the east, and is easily accessible by Metro via the Red/Purple line to the Civic Center/Grand Park station. The park was named one of American Planning Association's 10 "Great Public Spaces" in the U.S. for 2013. For more information, visit GrandParkLA.org.

REDCAT, CalArts' downtown center for contemporary arts, presents a dynamic and international mix of innovative visual, performing and media arts year round. Located inside the iconic Walt Disney Concert Hall complex in downtown Los Angeles, REDCAT houses a theater, a gallery space and a lounge. Through performances, exhibitions, screenings, and literary events, REDCAT introduces diverse audiences, students and artists to the most influential developments in the arts from around the world, and gives artists in this region the creative support they need to achieve national and international stature. REDCAT continues the tradition of the California Institute of the Arts, its parent organization, by encouraging experimentation, discovery and lively civic discourse. For current program and exhibition information call 213.237.2800 or visit www.REDCAT.org.

The Sharon Disney Lund School of Dance and the School of Film/Video at California Institute of the Arts are thrilled to announce the inaugural CalArts @ Dance Camera West Emerging Artists Competition. The Emerging Artists Competition welcomes submissions of dance media in any dance style or genre. The competition includes two categories--high school and college--and allows students to compete only with other students. The winning college film will receive a cash prize and the winning high school film will receive a CalArts scholarship prize. Selected films will be screened at the 13th Annual Dance Media Film Festival. The Sharon Disney Lund School of Dance at CalArts is one of the nation's premiere colleges for the professional training of contemporary dancers and choreographers. For more information on the CalArts@ Dance Camera West Emerging Artists Competition, please visit www.DanceCameraWest.org.

The Dance Resource Center is a service organization that provides the dance community access to information, resources, and services; and promotes the visibility and viability of dance in Greater Los Angeles on local, state and national levels. We foster the growth, development, and sustainability of Southern California's vast and vibrant dance community through our core program areas: convening, capacity building, research, and advocacy. Our goal is to support a thriving cultural ecology in which artists and audiences can participate in and experience dance as a living art form. For more information or to become a member, visit DanceResourceCenter.org.