Director’s statement for Rite of Passage

"I dance not in a place, I dance the place." Min Tanaka's words have been of great inspiration to me.

I chose to dance the spirit of an old abandoned house, to meditate about the passing of time, our relation to our memories, the transformations that construct our being, including that of life and death. I wanted to dance in my childhood home in Singapore, but it has long been destroyed. Performing in an old mansion in Rio de Janeiro, three elements collide: the violent history of colonial rule during which time it was built, a nostalgic longing for my Asian roots and the contemporary realities of life in a place that is not quite abandoned after all... "Rite of Passage" really is fruit of our globalized world of multiple identities. It reminds us that however much we suffer at any given point in time and place, we are also reborn with infinite possibilities to celebrate life.

art by Maca Martinez

Back to all films

like it on facebook