PRETTYBIRD director Jess Kohl brings out Royal Ballet principal Francesca Hayward’s darker side in this stunning black-and-white dance film, Siren, with a haunting narrative edge.

A visual journey into Hayward’s relationship with ballet, Siren draws on her early experiences of the art form to create a contrastingly intimate yet voyeuristic experience for the viewer. In collaboration with choreographer Michael Montgomery and designer Simone Rocha, director Kohl expertly crafts a hauntingly beautiful narrative that expresses the macabre origins of the ballets that captivated Hayward as a young child.

The film is available on NOWNESS and was also made possible by collaboration with executive producers, Jackson Forsythe (UNSIGNED) and Juliette Larthe (PRETTYBIRD). Siren is produced and presented by Films.Dance, a global platform and creative studio for
dance creatively directed by Jacob Jonas The Company.

Kohl commented, “It was a privilege to work with Francesca Hayward on my first dance film. We chose to shoot on 16mm black and white as we wanted to pay homage to the ballets that inspired Francesca in her childhood–she was drawn to macabre stories, and in Siren we want to represent the lesser known, darker side of the art form.”

Kohl is a London born filmmaker whose work marries raw intimacy with a focus on global youth culture and marginalized communities. Her interest in society’s fringes has seen her intimately document marginalized groups around the world, from punks in the Philippines to transgender communities in central India.

Credits

Production PRETTYBIRD and UNSIGNED Joss Kohl, director; Juliette Larthe, exec producer; Jackson Forsythe, exec producer/producer; Eoin McLoughlin, DP; Andreja Viskovic, production manager; Simone Rocha, costume designer; Robbie Spencer, stylist; Celia Burton, hair & makeup; Jed Darlington-Roberts, additional photography; Ibrahim Serra Mohammed, drone pilot. Filmed at the Royal Opera House, London. Postproduction Stitch Charlie Von Rotberg, editor; Alex Gregory, colorist; Diego Basualdo, Kirsty Oldfield, post producer. Postproduction Serena   Adrian Aragones, Flame colorist; Luis Huete, Esther Ceballos, Beatriz Descalzo, postproduction. Credit Design Jump Jirakaweekul. Creative Jacob Jonas Company Jacob Jonas, creative director. Music Isobel Waller Bridge, composer.

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