JUST BE THERE

Caspar Pfaundler / Austria / 2022 / International Premiere / 93 min.

synopsis

Taiwan and Austria, two countries on two different continents, two cultures. Two dance ensembles separated by many differences and yet their members speak the same language. The director spent two years with his camera, attending dance rehearsals of the Vienna State Ballet and the Cloud Gate Dance Theatre from Taiwan. He has captured how small gestures, steps and figures create a performance that we will not see in the end and his film shows more than just the final work. We can see a living matter that is being squeezed and shaped into an ideal form under the guidance of a choreographer. Art is like life and life is like art.

„Rehearsals are always a breathtaking work. No interviews, no commentary and no subtitles – the body language says enough.“

biography

Caspar Pfaundler (* 1959) is an Austrian filmmaker who lives and works in Taiwan. He studied theatre studies and art history in Vienna. He has made three documentaries and two feature films. His debut feature Lost and Found (2001) was screened at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in the section Another View.

more about film

director:	Caspar Pfaundler
cast:	Nina Poláková, Cheng Tsung-lung, Manuel Legris, Patrick de Bana
producer:	Caspar Pfaundler
photography:	Caspar Pfaundler
editing:	Caspar Pfaundler
music:	Philip Glass, Sigur Rós, Dona Rosa, Liang Chun-mei, Lim Giong, John Tavener
sound:	Caspar Pfaundler
sound design:	Axel Rab