Pina (2011)

A tribute to the late German choreographer, Pina Bausch, as her dancers perform her most famous creations.

Director:

Wim Wenders

Writer:

Wim Wenders

Stars:

Pina Bausch, Regina Advento, Malou Airaudo

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 10 wins & 24 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Regina Advento	...	Herself - Dancer
Malou Airaudo	...	Herself - Dancer
Ruth Amarante	...	Herself - Dancer
Jorge Puerta	...	Himself - Dancer (as Jorge Puerta Armenta)
Pina Bausch	...	Herself (archive footage)
Rainer Behr	...	Himself - Dancer
Andrey Berezin	...	Himself - Dancer
Damiano Ottavio Bigi	...	Himself - Dancer
Bénédicte Billet	...	Herself - Dancer
Ales Cucek	...	Himself - Dancer
Clementine Deluy	...	Herself - Dancer
Josephine Ann Endicott	...	Herself - Dancer
Lutz Förster	...	Himself - Dancer
Pablo Aran Gimeno	...	Himself - Dancer
Mechthild Großmann	...	Herself - Dancer

Storyline

In modern dance since the 1970s, few choreographers have had more influence in the medium than the late Pina Bausch. This film explores the life and work of this artist of movement while we see her company perform her most notable creations where basic things like water, dirt and even gravity take on otherworldly qualities in their dancing.

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Plot Keywords:

choreographer | modern dance | dance | wuppertal germany | retrospective | 

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Taglines:

Dance, dance, otherwise we are lost

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Genres:

Documentary

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some sensuality/partial nudity and smoking

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Germany] Official site [Japan]

Country:

Germany France UK

Language:

German French English Spanish Croatian Italian Portuguese Russian Korean

Release Date:

24 February 2011 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Pina - ein Tanzfilm in 3D

Filming Locations:

Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

€3,238,460 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

€488,640 (Germany), 27 February 2011, Limited Release

Opening Weekend USA:

$83,027, 6 January 2012, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$3,524,826

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$14,624,826

Company Credits

Production Co:

Neue Road Movies,Eurowide Film Production,Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF)

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Wim Wenders reports that he actively resisted going to see Bausch's Café Müller in 1985. He claims he had no interest in dance whatsoever and was dragged to the production by his then companion, Solveig Dommartin. Once he had been seated in the audience and began to watch, however, he found himself so moved by the performance that he wept.

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Quotes

Pina Bausch: What are we longing for? Where does all this yearning come from?

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Connections

Referenced in Midnight Movie Review: Film Top 10 2011 (2012)

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Soundtracks

Luna de Margarita
Voice, lyrics & Music: Simón Díaz.

User Reviews

Candy for my eyes and food for my soul!

For those of you not immersed in the dance world, Pina is a movie about German choreographer Pina Bausch, who recently died at the age of 68. She was a pioneer in her field to say the least, really breaking boundaries with Modern and site-specific dance. I'd obviously heard her name many times in my course of study in college, but really wasn't that familiar with her or her work before going to see the movie. The movie isn't so much a biography of her life as just a presentation of her work by the dancers in her company, interspersed with brief interviews. The dancers each in turn share their impressions of her and what it was like to work with her, while showing some of her most awe-inspiring choreography. I was so moved! Dancer or not, this movie is worth $15 spent to see it in 3-D.

What really made an impression on me about Pina's choreography and her dancers was the authenticity of the emotional content. Her work is so emotional by nature, often very sad but sometimes extremely joyous as well. The dancers weren't faking it though. The things they were feeling were real. Obviously I'm not in their heads but something in the way they carried themselves and executed each movement indicated to me that this was a very real and meaningful experience for them. It transcended the mime and pretend of much concert dance I've seen. They were so committed; I couldn't help but feel what they were feeling.

Another aspect of her choreography that I found very unique was the site-specific elements she incorporated into her work. She made wonderful use of nature, be it dirt, water, leaves, rocks, trees, or even things found in a city. She used these things the same way Balanchine would use the cavalier in relation to the ballerina. There was a partnership between dancer and environment. The surroundings weren't just a setting, they were part of the dance and without them the meaning would not be the same. I found it so inspiring! In all honesty, I've never been one for site-specific dance. My own experiences with it have been far from satisfying. In Pina's choreography however, I found inspiration! I would like to dabble in site-specific work more now.

I don't feel that I have the words to do this movie justice. Just go see it. It was candy for my eyes and food for my soul. I feel so inspired and so thankful to have a person like Pina Bausch pave the way in the art I'm so passionate about.