Bodies Apart, Moving Together II

2020
dance film

Tags: Film, Dance, Pandemic response, International collaboration, Grief & resilience, Social practice

Co-directed by myself and Jaleesa Johnston, this second film in the Bodies Apart, Moving Together trilogy expanded the original project into a deeper exploration of embodiment and collective presence during the pandemic. Where the first film centered on the urgency of isolation and the longing to connect across physical distance, Part II invited 25 dancers to move in response to prompts asking them to dance for themselves and in relation to something greater than their individual experience.

The film embodies grief, resilience, and spiritual connection, grounding the human body as a vessel for communion with forces beyond the self. Set to Odetta’s song “One Grain of Sand”, the work carries the intimacy of personal ritual into a shared chorus, amplifying movement as a universal language of survival and solidarity.

The work was noted for its emotional resonance and ability to hold both grief and connection at once. As described in an Oregon ArtsWatch interview, the collaboration emerged not only from isolation, but from kinship, and the urgency of signaling across time and space—using movement as a language of survival, expression, and endurance.