One thing I love about IMP-Style is that it's limitless. Since there are an infinite variety of objects and environments on and in which to play, there is also no end to my discovery process. In "Pass That Dutch", I shifted my ratio away from "top-rocking" (bipedal dance), and towards more 3-dimensional dance exploration. That set the bar for me, and Elephunk shifted that ratio even further.
My first location was a place I had briefly explored (and been kicked out of) previously: the Amtrak maintenance yard. Such great structures to enjoy! I knew there was risk in this one, especially as I had recently been cuffed and detained for trespassing on railroad property, which I was fortunate enough to get on camera.
I've already posted the video of the arrest, so here's the video of the deputy, searching vainly for my camera, while I sat, cuffed in the car:
There were workers at the Amtrak yard, but they were the cool Latino labor types, not the uptight white management types. They didn't bother me at all, despite the fact that I shot in three separate locations, with two takes each. When I danced in the doorway of the engine car, one of them shot video of me with his cell phone camera. Amusing, because each time I glanced back, he quickly turned, to act as if he was shooting the train car he was working on. Didn't bother me any; the worst thing that could happen was the he'd post it on YouTube! ;)
The bridge-like structure at the Amtrak yard is part of a parking scheme they have, wherein a train rides onto this enormous turntable, and it rotates to allow the train to park in one of several radiating spots. Unfortunately, I didn't have control over the turntable, or believe me, I would've had it spinning during the whole dance. Maybe for a future video?
I thought the turntable was going to be mostly a parkour/dance stage, but then I found the brooms that had been left there, and realized that I needed to include them in the dance. In the bloopers video, below, you'll see how I tried to use up to three brooms at a time, but I needed a lot more practice, so only the play with the single broom made the cut.
Props are an important new feature of the IMP-Style, because it's just the micro version of parkour. In parkour, I explore with my body on the solid features of a concrete world, and with props, the object plays on me (the truck tires are somewhere between prop and structure). I attacked the brooms with some confidence, because I've had the chance to play with them before. Inspired Mayhem's third video was a contest entry for Swiffer, and my fellow IMPs and I danced with all sorts of cleaning utensils:
The big change in how I approached Elephunk (vs. the earlier IMP-Styles) was that I indulged in second takes. In the first two solos (and in the duet with Outi), I just set up the camera, and shot only once per location (with a few exceptions). But when trying to approach a subject as new as the red train car was, with all its little ledges and lips, there's no opportunity in one take, to even learn it, not to mention really relax into a dance. Of course, second takes and trespassing don't mix that well, so I still have to be as efficient as possible.
Speaking of trespassing, of course I got accosted by security (who thought I was nuts), one police officer (who thought I was a tagger), and kicked out of the cement mixing plant (who knows what they thought?). Some of which I got on/slightly off camera:
Both guys used vulgar language, but they were kind enough to call me "bro" and "partner". And nobody pressed charges. :)
The cement plant was a beautiful find. I was having Z (my motorcycle) tuned up nearby, and wandered over to this gorgeous tempting spot, with absolutely zero signs of human life. A ghost plant. I wandered in, to see if any alarms would go off, with my cover story of shooting this unusual sign that I saw posted:
Of course, as you can hear in the video above, there were indeed people on the premises, but by the time they shooed me out, I had already shot two takes on the mixing vats, and was busy exploring the see-saw like ramps that I think are used to help spray water into the cement trucks. The truck tire was shot just outside the plant.
Of course, the further I go in trying to explore new territory, the more likely I am to make mistakes. So far, no more than a few bruises and scratches (knock wood), but some of the bloopers are worth sharing:
I'm getting the distinct impression that you're off your meds. Waaay off. :)
ReplyDeleteI sort of get the adventure thing, but you lose me on the dancing part. Help! Explain! What is this thing called, love?
It's called IMP-Style, of course.
ReplyDeleteThe adventure is in seeking whatever is out there, without suffering from potential consequences.
The dance is how I open up to the world; it's my teacher in learning props and obstacles. When I dance, I don't have to think about my environment. And the separation between me, the dance, and the environment becomes arbitrary, indistinct.
So how does the dance part work? Are you listening to the music while you dance, or do you do that internally and add the soundtrack later?
ReplyDeleteI couldn't find much on IMP-Style online other than your examples. :(
Yeah, I have my iPod on the whole time, dancing to one song over and over again. It makes a big difference: the music helps me connect to the dance, when there's so many tempting self-consciousness distractions, like safety, being caught, looking like a fool, etc.
ReplyDeleteI tend to go around with a small handful of songs on my iPod, and a few extra shirts in my backpack. That way, when I stumble across something I'd like to dance with/on, I can try to match it to the right song. I'm moving, slowly, toward creating visual themes for each song, but it's still pretty arbitrary, based on what I happen upon.
And no, you won't find "IMP-Style" elsewhere, cuz I made it up. I figured I needed some kind of "brand name", so that if someone liked one vid on youtube, they could easily identify and click on another. Lately, I've been experimenting with giving them more descriptive names: "Hip Hop dance meets Parkour", for example, because the problem with a brand name is: it needs to be known to be valuable.
There might be another word already out there for what it is I'm doing, but I haven't come across it, yet. IMP, by the way, is the acronym for Inspired Mayhem Players. The nice thing about having "my own style" is that there is no wrong, no straying from the tradition. I'm limited only by my imagination, and what appeals to me.