“Dance is not for dancers,
dance is for man.”
- Mary Starks Whitehouse, 1960
- Mary Starks Whitehouse, 1960
cinema antiplastique is a film and movement studio in the land presently known as brooklyn, ny, and the first of its kind. we produce our original videos on site, with each film uniquely created for our space and conditions of our living moment.
our three hour workshops are mini intensives into our movement meditation practice.
this said, the ability to improvise is something adults often benefit from being taught to do (across various forms). techniques in our work which draw on practices including movement in depth/ authentic movement, experiential anatomy, gestalt and narrative therapy and butoh dance allow participants develop deeper trust in their embodied intuition over time. the practice aims to allow a diverse range of people to physically move and access inner information in ways that are surprising and genuine to their needs and spirits.
2. why move with moving images?
cinema antiplastique transcends western therapeutic and somatic focuses on the personal and individual by incorporating an outward looking filmic element. these moving image artworks help us both to connect with and transcend ourselves with less strain.
our moving image artworks remind participants of the many bodies (plant, animal, mineral, water) that our earth has in her fold, and of our own expansive natures.
this dual focus on the inner and outer supports participants to experience the embodied knowing that we are not only from this earth, but also that our earth also resides within us. acknowledging the divisions colonialization, industrialization, capitalism and mainstream environmentalism has placed between ourselves, our bodies, our children, ancestors and more than human earth relations, we move towards the reunification of our bodies with our earth in earth’s multitude of forms.
3. who are “the people”? ie, which people will benefit from this practice / who is cinema antiplastique for?
our work can benefit a very broad and diverse range of people. please see our offerings. page for this the wide and intergenerational range.
4. can people with phsyical disabilities participate? cinema antiplastique offers a practice of listening to one’s body that is creative and genuine to one’s own unique needs and embodied ability. movement is intuitive and self directed, making it an ideal practice for people with various physical disabilities. one of our favorite teachers, the butoh dancer atsushi takenouchi says “dance can be anything from the movement of an eyelash to the twitch of a finger.” participants in our workshops - both in person and online - are in fact not required to move at all. in general, individual and autonomous participatation is helpful for our in person workshops; for questions about specific disability accommodations please reach out to us at info@cinemantiplastique.org.
our space is wheelchair accessible.
5. why does cinema antiplastique offer only workshops and not classes?
in keeping with our wider mission and ethos, we prefer the slower and deeper experience of the workshop form to briefer, shorter and more frequent classes. these workshops are mini intensives into our practice.
our work can be an addendum and or alternative to talk therapy, allowing participants access to embodied and preverbal memories.
we offer our 3 hour workshops at an accessible rate of $150 per session. this said, send us a note if you need a scholarship!
info [at] cinemantiplastique [dot] org
6. your workshops look pretty far out, are they for people on drugs or for medicine ceremonies?
they are far out, but not because of drugs or plant medicine - we actually ask that everyone who comes to our movement workshops be alchohol and drug free (not including those prescribed by a doctor) for 24 hours before attending. this request does not come from a moral place! we have deep respect for plant medicine and other drugs for the ways in which they allow humans to open and access positive and expansive feelings. we request this because of the specifics of our practice: this better ensures that participants are able to access their inner information with clarity and without any distortion.
we also ask this because we require everyone in our workshops to be self possessed for the (physical and emotional) safety of others.
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7. are cinema antiplastique’s workshop for fun or for healing?
over time we have found that human beings have as much capacity to repress joy as they have to repress grief and sorrow, so the answer to this depends quite specifically on the individual (and sometimes the day)!
over oover nor do we see a division or contradiction between fun and healing. we view healing as something that can be enjoyable, playful and embodied. we view fun as embodied and healing as well (rather than simply escapist or destructive).
cinema antiplastique is a space for expansion, imagination and reconnection not accessible within the solemn divisions between spontaneous movement, therapy, dance parties, etc.
8. is there music at cinema antiplastique?
unless otherwise noted, our experiences and original moving images are silent so that we can hear the sounds and songs within ourselves. we can tune in to our hearts beating, the sound of our joints or our breathing, the movement of others swishing softly on the floor. we listen to our minds and bodies wish to share with us.
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