A practical introduction to the basic principles of creating dance for film and video. Based on the premise that video can be more than simply a recording of dance performance, this course highlights ways that choreographers can use video technology as a creative tool.

We explore practical methods for creating and studying dance film through hands-on classwork and project assignments. Techniques and technologies of video cameras, formats, editing and projection are covered, along with an overview of digital video topics including creation and compression of video for the web, DVD and CD-ROM.

We screen and discuss examples of dance works for the camera, covering a sampling of early work as well as recent videodance projects. We examine a variety of approaches to creating dance for the screen, and discuss the evolution and growth of dance film as a developing form.