Gr4 Students Create Dance Film for AEFE "Danse, Joue, Filme" Competition

An Annual Tradition of Dance Filmmaking

For several years now, our Gr4 students have been taking part in a unique artistic project: creating a choreography, filming it, and producing a short dance film. This particular initiative is a testimony to the long-standing collaboration between the school and dance teacher/choreographer Marie Walburg-Plouviez.  

A New Challenge: The AEFE "Danse, Joue, Filme" Competition

This year, the project took on a new dimension by participating in the AEFE "Danse, Joue, Filme" competition, which challenges schools from the AEFE network to create a dance video following specific creative constraints. The theme chosen was balance. As Marie describes it: "I developed a choreographic research workshop with the students, exploring suspension and release — how to lose balance and find it again, how to use counterweights in the body."

Workshop Content: 8 Sessions of Exploration

Over 8 workshop sessions, students worked on:

• Suspension and release techniques
• Partner work — learning to share and transfer body weight
• Group lifts (portés), building trust, body awareness, and teamwork
• Improvisation and choreographic research

Behind the Camera: The Filming Experience

Filming took place indoors this year at the Waller Center Gym, allowing for overhead shots from a balcony and multiple camera angles. A detailed storyboard was prepared in advance to make the most of the 3-hour shoot. The experience was intense and eye-opening for the students: "These moments are always so rich — for us as teachers and artists, but also for the students, who discover what goes on behind the camera and the complexity of filming a video." Students showed remarkable focus and dedication, repeating sequences multiple times to capture the best takes.

Part of a Broader Dance Journey

This project is part of a broader dance curriculum that begins in preschool and continues through Gr5. The Gr4 teacher in charge of the project, Sébastien Lassalvy explains: "The ultimate goal of this project is to move beyond short-lived exercises and produce something tangible and lasting." Key milestones include a full stage performance in Gr2 at Ortega, and this dance film in Gr4.

A Year-Round Movement Concept

Each year, the program focuses on a specific movement concept — this year, the spiral — developed across all grade levels. In the words of the choreographer: "Dance workshops allow students to develop their creativity, their self-confidence, and their artistic sense — learning to listen to their bodies, collaborate with others, and express themselves in a sensitive and personal way."