Calgary International Film Festival - DANCER
August 24, 2016
From
his earliest years, Ukrainian Sergei Polunin was destined to be one of
the top ballet dancers of his generation. His family sacrificed much to
further his career: his grandmother moved to Greece to be a caregiver,
and his father went to Portugal for work. At 13, he was accepted into
the Royal Ballet School in London, necessitating a move from his home
and family. At 19, he was named the Royal Ballet’s youngest ever
principal; and at 25, he walked away from ballet, driven by pressure to
the brink of self-destruction.
Steven Cantor’s DANCER explores the reasons for this defection, and
illustrates Polunin’s skills with clips from his groundbreaking
performance set to Hozier’s “Take Me To Church”, which had more than 14
million views on YouTube. The documentary features Polunin, his family
and friends, and shows the effects that extraordinary fame can have on a
person and the people who surround him.