Dance films, a coming together of two art forms that empowers dance artists and filmmakers alike to rethink movements and transform storytelling. Since 2021, Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay joins hands with arts centers in the region through Dance en Scene, an initiative to partner art centers who are dedicated to commissioning dance films that invite artists to find inspiration from sites or themes of meanings and significance, celebrating the diversity of culture and artmaking of Chinese artists living in different cities.

Show Time: 2/26 Sat. - 2/28 Mon. 12:00-18:00

Half

What happens if your reflection breaks free from you? What will it do and where will it go?
 

Half is an explosive and intimate dance portrait of a dancer and his reflection. The film offers a fusion of film and dance by incorporating movements within the image. Through this, it also explores the idea of having multi-faceted layers within the self.
 

Half is directed by critically acclaimed director Royston Tan and produced by Chuan Pictures, in collaboration with co-choreographer and dancer ZHOU Zi-hao, co-choreographer Yarra Ileto as well as composer and sound designer CHOUG Li-chuan.

To whom it may concern

To whom it may concern can be likened to a note that records fragments of life and is thrown into the river of time. It travels toward the future, waiting for someone to pick it up and read it to connect other chapters of the story.

Peculiar Man observed the daily lives of Les Petites Choses Production members from the perspective of a creator. This collaborative process, which took place in-person and online, enabled Peculiar Man to compose each person's passions, frustrations, and idiosyncrasies into portraits and respond to the surroundings via body movement. Through the reinterpretation of the Good Things Happening Films Studio and director Wu Hsiao-lu, a poetic and detached approach is adopted to portray intimate moments that are either absurd and noisy or lonely and quiet.

The Body of Forking Paths

One is bound to face many unknown “forks” of fate along the path of life, hence the body manifests in multiple forms in this journey. At this moment, the paths of the “contemporary Taiwanese indigenous people” – whether dwelling in their tribes or in cities –are caught in the fractures and disassociation of this era.
 

In addition to preserving traditions and legends, new narratives are also being constructed. This is much like the native seeds of mountain flora, which take root and sprout locally before dispersing to blossom in different places. Some are even replanted in distant foreign lands. Their stems and leaves mingle and interlace, forming maps of the body that are conflicting yet harmonious and enriched with life.

A Long Walk

“This is a long winding road of darkness, where light only shines at the very end - as it is with creative forces; as it is in life.”
 

Since Ong Yong Lock arrived in Hong Kong in the 1980s, he has taken root here, and has been inseparable with dance; dedicating himself to performances, choreography, and teaching, his 30 years long winding road in dance had inevitably gone through ups and downs and he remained persistent. Despite the long winding road in the long dark night, after more than 30 years of dance life, he starts racing on this path again, perhaps for the very last time.

• 【Video Introduction】Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay Half

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• 【Video Introduction】National Taichung Theater (Taiwan)  To whom it may concern

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• 【Video Introduction】National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts (Weiwuying) (Taiwan) The Body of Forking Paths

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• 【Video Introduction】Tai Kwun - Centre for Heritage and Arts (Hong Kong) A Long Walk

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