The Film

Film Maker Damian Eckstein speaks:

I have been friends with Takehiro Ueyama for a while now. A few years ago I was, as Take introduced me at the rehearsals and parties, his “composer.”  We had just completed Looking for Water which took a good six months from start to finish. Our collaboration musically is a sonic mish-mash, kind of similar to a found object photo collage in the visual arts. The dance from my point-of-view is a dazzling collection of purposeful tribal movement incorporating sign language. Takehiro would come over to my apartment and we would work on the music while he would tell me about his choreography–for example, who he would cast in the solo (which is the exceptional Kate Hirstein as seen in the documentary). He would stick around after we finished work and drink wine while my wife Nicole would tell him everything his dance company needed to do to conquer the world.

Take invited Nicole and me to the world premiere of Looking for water in Chatham, New York. I brought my camera. The rest is history…

The movie began to develop from the moment we arrived at Performance Space 21, the arts epicenter of Chatham. Take and the wonderful President of PS 21 Judy Grunberg allowed me access to every aspect of the production, from rehearsals to performances from backstage to the closing night party. It did not take long for me to realize what a tremendous undertaking running a dance company is; coordinating a group of (in this case) up to twelve people. Getting the space to perform in, making costumes, lighting design, promoting the show and finding the money to do the aforementioned. I play in rock bands so I’m used to show biz–but this was entirely another level!

Slowly, the dancers got used to me poking a camera in their faces. My hand got steadier and the raw footage looked less like The Blair Witch Project as time went on…after three months I felt I was finished.

Then Take said: “I think you should tape us for a year”.

I said: “Ummm…a year?”

Take said: “Yes. That’s what I think–it’s good! No?”

So it was settled.

A year and a half later filming finished.

With the financial help of friends and family I bought a REALLY BIG computer (an iMac if Mr. Jobs is curious and wants me to do an endorsement), taught myself an editing program and submitted it to a festival.

And now…

I’m Take’s “director” as he introduces me at events and gatherings and Nicole is a programming and special events coordinator for TAKE Dance. I think of myself more as a documentarian. I didn’t direct anyone in the movie. There is only one “staged” moment in the film. And no, I won’t tell you where it is. It was important to me that the movie is in real time. Unfolding as it happened. Nothing is manipulated. No sound bite is taken out of context (okay, one is–so it’s two “staged” things). No mix and match performances because we got better video at a later date. Nothing is scripted. It’s pretty much just one man with a Camcorder. A YEAR WITH TAKE DANCE is not about reality as it has been presented to us in today’s popular programming but about being a real contemporary dance company in the 21st century.