UNSPOKEN MOVEMENT
Filming with choreographer Kari Wolfe Borni, her horses Moon and Raven, and a group of dancers has me thinking about trust, attention and unspoken language. A first glimpse of a film taking shape.
Lately I’ve been filming with choreographer Kari Wolfe Borni, her horses and dancers Malia Detar Cheung, Hanna Satterlee and Maura Gahan. I came into the project knowing very little about dance, perhaps even less about horses. The interviews and observational footage have given me a lot to think about and look for through the lens.
The dancers talk about presence, attention, and learning a shared language. A slight shift in a dancer’s shoulder can communicate something instantly to a horse. The horse’s response can be exactly right, even when it isn’t what the dancer intended. I want to see the gesture and the response, but also the pause before either happens. Who is watching whom? When does someone move, wait, or adjust?
I’m grateful for the trust Kari, Moon, Raven and the dancers have given me to record a creative process while it’s still being discovered. There’s vulnerability in letting someone witness that uncertainty, and strength in being willing to stay with it.
At the dress rehearsal Monday night, I knew there would be improvisation, but hadn’t anticipated the bond between audience and performers, those with four legs and those with two. I felt involved in what was unfolding. Everyone in the building was connected in some way that felt new to me. For a few minutes, it felt as though the horses had let us into their world. The conversations about unspoken language suddenly had a shape I could see and feel.
There’s something familiar in this for me as a documentary filmmaker: preparing enough to recognize a moment, while staying open to what I didn’t see coming. These frames are a first glimpse of a film taking shape. I’m looking forward to sharing more of this extraordinary collaboration.
