Mild Dissociation 47
Dundee, Scotland, UNITED KINGDOM - Dive in and immerse yourself with this short film by the dancers of Scottish Dance Theatre and settle into a state of curiosity and daydreaming.
The dancers from Scotland’s national contemporary dance company in Dundee have been on furlough leave the past couple months and self-organized to create this film collectively across four different countries.
Their new piece presents a window of social distancing times and its creation process represents a record of how artists have been navigating creating work during a lockdown.
The film and the text below are a result of a collaboration between 8 of these dancers scattered across borders during the COVID-19 pandemic. “It was born from the urge to connect, document and dream together and was created from scratch between April-June 2020.”
From the dancers:
When we are young, we are taught to hold concentration over daydreaming. To focus, rather than have our heads in the clouds. Maybe because it doesn’t bring food to the table? Daydreaming leads you inwards, away from your immediate surroundings, to what you might not see with your eyes fully open. In the privacy of the imagination, day-dreaming engages with another way of thinking, one that wanders about and doubles back on itself. It has no tangible conditions.
In this grey zone, a small window opens up, a private space; perhaps for internal reflection or a little redirection.
A devoted companion to those well-trodden tracks, to your ‘one-hours-exercise’. A change to those only too familiar routes. A smart alter-ego of your boredom; the thinking that happens when you are
just
passing
time.
We hope you enjoy x
Credits
Title: Mild Dissociation 47
Film and text made in collaboration by:
Genevieve Reeves , Glenda Gheller, Jessie Roberts-Smith, Johanna Wernmo, Kieran Brown, Luigi Nardone, Pauline Torzuoli, Solène Weinachter
The Title
‘Mild dissociation’ is the core experience of daydreaming. It is the process of detaching from your immediate surroundings or reality. This doesn’t mean complete separation from it, but simply a distancing from it. Daydreaming, or mild dissociation ‘institutes a grey-zone of action, linking world-withdrawal and imaginative inventiveness’. It’s something we all do and is an essential part of any process.
And why specifically 47?
The phenomenon of daydreaming is “common in people's daily life... shown by a large-scale study in which participants spent 47% of their waking time, on average, daydreaming.”
“We also wanted to highlight the aspect of the film being just one combination of daydream fragments among an infinity of other possibilities.”
The Process
What’s most interesting is how the artists modelled a way of working during their process that adapted to the current circumstances. They first met weekly (by video call) to discuss ideas and “talked about time and the shift in how we were seeing our surroundings during this period of immediate isolation.” They “discussed all living the same experience, together but apart.”
After deciding on a subject at the beginning of May, they set periods of time to film and sound record individually. After considering how to frame the shots, they worked as three separate groups who took responsibility of each stage: reviewing and analyzing footage, video montaging, and editing audio together.
“Our weekly meetings became hand-overs, where work by one group was explained, discussed and past onto the next group in the chain of making. This meant giving full responsibility and trust to each group and passing on the the role of making executive decisions. Having this three group system allowed us to be intensely engaged in the process at times and to step back to give feedback with fresh eyes at others.”
The dancers practiced an interesting model where “by relinquishing individual responsibility between each stage of the process… [they] were able to make something entirely collaboratively which grew on its own rather than having a singular direction.”
About Scottish Dance Theatre
“Led by Artistic Director Joan Clevillé, Scottish Dance Theatre creates dance that is engaging and engaged. Our Artistic Vision is driven by artistic exploration, learning, and a desire to connect with others.
The company is one of the few full-time ensembles in the UK and is made up of nine inquisitive and versatile dancers who have come from all over the world to work and create in our home at Dundee Rep. Working at the forefront of the art form, Scottish Dance Theatre collaborates with internationally acclaimed choreographers and artists, supports the development of emerging and homegrown talent and promotes a plurality of voices.
For more than thirty years, the company has brought unique dance experiences to audiences and communities across Scotland, the UK and abroad, producing high quality dance that is thought provoking and holds resonance in people’s lives. Scottish Dance Theatre has received multiple awards (including the Critics’ Circle National Dance Award for Outstanding Company Repertoire), and has built a strong international profile, becoming Scotland’s flagship dance company and a creative ambassador of Dundee.”