Cinédanse Montréal, Sept 20-23

The inaugural Cinédanse Montréal launches tonight at the Cinéma Impérial. The opening night gala screening will be The Co(te)lette Film by Mike Figgis, with the director in attendance. The film is based on the work of feminist Belgian choreographer Ann Van den Broek.

The film is a lively and faithful cinematic reproduction of the sexually daring, provocative work by Van den Broek. Grand prizewinner for best film at the Los Angeles Dance Camera West, Figgis' movie is acclaimed by the Los Angeles Times, depicted as a "rare piece, an iconoclast portrait of the modern woman... Co(te)lette is a kind of postmodern Showgirls meets Fight Club punctuated with a dance marathon vibe."

Other films being screened include Dancing for Mr. B: Six Balanchine Ballerinas; Rêves de Babel; Édouard, Louise, Marc et Amelia; Aux limites de la scène, and Life in Movement. The closing film will be Fabrice Herrault's Claude Bessy: Lignes d'Une Vie (Traces of a Life).

The festival will also host a free panel entitled Pourquoi la danse à l'écran? Quoi faire et ne pas faire? (Why Onscreen Dance? What to Do or Not to Do?). It will be presented by Los Angeles Dance Camera West co-founder Kelly Hargraves, along with Montreal choreographer Victor Quijada and visual artist David Coste on Saturday September 22nd at 10:30 am.

Montreal Cinédanse is the city’s newest film festival, led by Sylvain Bleau and directly inspired by Cinedans Amsterdam, New York Dance Camera and the Los Angeles Camera West. For this first 2012 lineup, more than 35 films from 15 countries will be showcased at Imperial theater, starting Thursday September 20th to Sunday September 23rd. Numerous acclaimed foreign films as well as other gems only recently discovered will enhance tributes to Balanchine, Diaghilev, Édouard Lock, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Jerome Robbins, Pina Bausch and Claude Bessy; the latter whom will honour us with her presence. Her film Claude Bessy: Lignes d’une Vie will be screened in closing. Young Montreal talents Virginie Brunelle, Stéphanie Decourteille, Frédérick Gravel, Guillaume Paquin, Dave St-Pierre, Audrey Bergeron will share the screen with these must-see dance artists.

See complete program in the event pamphlet as an attachment pdf located on the website at www.cinedanse-mtl.com.

The first Cinédanse Montréal continues to Sunday, September 23 at Cinéma Impérial, Cinéma Excentris and Cinéma du Parc.