Flatlands Dance Film Festival Fall 2025

Name: Flatlands Dance Film Festival Fall 2025
Start: 2025-09-11T19:00:00-05:00
Location: Spurlock Musueum , Urbana, IL, United States, Illinois 61801

Schedule

Thu, 11 Sep, 2025 at 07:00 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

Spurlock Musueum , Urbana, IL, United States, Illinois 61801 | Urbana, IL

Flatlands Dance Film Festival
Thursday, September 11, 2025
7 pm (Doors open at 6:30 pm)
Spurlock Museum, 600 S Gregory St
Urbana, IL 61801
$10 general admission
$5 students and seniors
Festival Curator: Laura Chiaramonte
Feature Films by Rena Butler, Endalyn T. Outlaw (Taylor), and Irishia Hubbard Romaine

The festival opens on Thursday, September 11, with films that align with Dance at Illinois’ 25-26 season, Black on Black: A Celebration of Black Dance!

Rena Butler hails from Chicago, IL, and received her BFA from SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance. Rena has performed with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, AIM by Kyle Abraham, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company, David Dorfman Dance, The Kevin Wynn Collection, Pasos Con Sabor Salsa Dance Company, and Gibney Company. "A Tale of Two", was created, filmed, and scored in Chicago during the summer of 2020, the work is filled with tension and tenderness, reflecting the vulnerability of youth in a violent world. Dreams amidst despair. Hope amidst hatred. Joy amidst injustice. In a work that speaks powerfully to our present moment, the Hubbard Street Dancers capture both the intimate and the universal. "A Tale of Two" is an examination of Chicago's extreme cultural dichotomy and how it affects the city's youth in disparate communities.

Dancer, choreographer, and educator Endalyn T. Outlaw (née Taylor) presents "I Am A Woman", based on the poem by Mikenzi Masiah Barrow. Outlaw is the dean of the School of Dance at University of North Carolina School of the Arts. She has held the positions of director of Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) School in New York—a company she joined in 1984, becoming a principal dancer in 1993—and director of the Cambridge Summer Art Institute in Massachusetts.
Irishia Hubbard Romaine is a choreographer, filmmaker, and educator from South Carolina. She is an Assistant Professor in the School of Dance at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania and a 2024 Mellon Arts & Practitioner Fellow at Yale University’s Center for the Study of Race, Indigeneity, and Transnational Migration (RITM). Romaine’s research examines the unwritten history of Black moving image arts through the lens of Africanist Aesthetics in dance, photography, and film. "F3VER" follows the journey of Andrew "3D Dance Fever" Jones, a native of Bakersfield, who defies societal expectations as a professional street dancer, high school substance abuse counselor, and globally recognized dance fitness instructor. As Andrew navigates the challenges of his hometown, he discovers the power of dance as a transformative tool, using its rhythms to overcome personal adversity and inspire others. Through movement-based scenes and heartfelt moments of reflection, the film shines a light on Andrew's resilience and showcases the universal language of dance as a means of healing, self-expression, and empowerment.
"Arthur Mitchell’s Love Letter: Dance Theatre of Harlem and its Legacies" -- A TRIC/Mellon Grant Project The film features a panel discussion with the co-editors and writers of the forthcoming anthology titled "Dance Theatre of Harlem: A Multivalent Portrait." This anthology project aims to bring together researchers and legacy stakeholders in Dance Theatre of Harlem historiography to provide a comprehensive view of the company, school, and neighborhood. The presentation focuses on several key aspects, including the portrayal of ballet as a Black dance practice within the broader context of the African Diaspora, the exploration of the geographic and cultural influences on the company's artists during their global tours, and the examination of Harlem as both a physical location and a cultural hub that shapes the company's identity and artistic practices.
In addition, there will be a panel discussion hosted by Assistant Professor of Dance Alexandra Barbier, addressing the important impact "Black on Black on Black on Black" at the Krannert Art Museum had on the community and how the exhibit inspired this year's Dance at Illinois Production Season. Guest speakers will include: Associate Professor of Dance Roxane D’Orléans Juste, Professor & Chair of Studio Arts Patrick Earl Hammie, Associate Professor of Graphic Design & Design for Responsible Innovation & Studio Stacey Robinson, Special Advisor to the Chancellor for Arts Integration at Illinois, and Professor Dr. Cynthia Oliver, Dean of the School of Dance at University of North Carolina School of the Arts Endalyn Taylor, and Associate Professor of Graphic Design & Design for Responsible Innovation Nekita Thomas.