First Position
Six dancers. Five minutes on stage. One chance to make it.
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DVD Details
- Encoding: Region 1 (USA & Canada)
- Released: October 30, 2012
- Originally Released: 2011
- Label: Ifc Independent Film
Performers, Cast and Crew:
Directed by | Bess Kargman | |
Composition by | Chris Hajian | |
Director of Photography: | Nick Higgins | |
Hosted by | Aran Bell, Michaela DePrince & Denys Ganio |
Entertainment Reviews:
[T]his isn’t just a documentary about ballet and the extraordinary discipline it requires; it’s also about youth and its attendant hopes and risks, spelled out in language that’s painfully universal.
Movieline
Rating: 3/5 --
Undeniably effective as drama, as we ponder the varying degrees of ambition and talent driving these young people to push their bodies beyond the limit in the hope of grasping a future in the spotlight.
Full Review
Time Out
[A]n appealing, largely upbeat documentary about young ballet dancers duking it out, sometimes on point and in tulle, for top honors at the Youth America Grand Prix.
New York Times
Bess Kargman's debut documentary is a marvelous way to spend 94 minutes....FIRST POSITION is about toughness of mind as much as visions of beauty.
Wall Street Journal
These performers are so young, so serious, so full of dreams and so hard on themselves that it is difficult not to be moved by their striving.
Los Angeles Times
Each of her six young subjects vying for the Youth America Grand Prix is a wonder of self-imposed discipline in service to art. -- Grade: B+
Entertainment Weekly
Rating: 3.5/5 --
If you've got tweens and teens who are into dancing, be it in classes or around the house, it offers a pleasant cultural alternative to the other holiday entertainment on offer.
Full Review
New Zealand Herald
Product Description:
Six dance students follow the same dream against long odds in this documentary from filmmaker Bess Kargman. The Youth America Grand Prix is a competition for young ballet students between the ages of 9 and 19; it's one of the world's leading proving grounds for new talent, and most major dance companies and schools pay close attention to who fares well in the annual contest. Each year, thousands of dancers enter, but only 300 make it into the finals, held in New York City. FIRST POSITION follows six youngsters who've entered the Grand Prix, and their lives and backgrounds offer a glimpse into the wide range of competitors. Sixteen-year-old Joan Sebastian Zamora is from Colombia, and his parents have sent him to America to train with a top instructor; he has to deal with his family's high expectations as well as those of the judges. Miko Fogarty is a 12-year-old from Palo Alto, CA, who dreams of becoming a professional; her parents believe in her, but also want her younger brother to follow in her footsteps, whether he's willing to or not. Fourteen-year-old Michaela DePrince was born in Sierra Leone, and is still haunted by memories of the bloody civil war there; she's since been adopted by a couple in Philadelphia, and dreams of becoming a star in a field where African-Americans are still not well-represented. Rebecca Houseknecht is a 17-year-old from Maryland who looks like a star, and she hopes to skip college and go directly into professional dance. Aran Bell, 11, is the son of a military doctor; he's determined to learn, and while his family is in Italy, he travels hours each day for lessons with a former star of the Ballet Marseilles. And Gaya Bommer Yemini, a close friend of Aran, is the daughter of Nadine Bommer, a well-respected Israeli choreographer, who hopes to follow her mother into the world of ballet. FIRST POSITION received its world premiere at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival.
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Product Info
- UPC: 030306982892
- Shipping Weight: 0.16/lbs (approx)
- International Shipping: 1 item