a fun little project while back in Taiwan this past December.

im generally not really a fan of “on location” dance videos.. but for being in the homeland, I suppose I was willing to make an exception…

probably the first project we’ve done that required a little more planning… storyboarding, and editing concept, something of a storyline, etc… although it was probably done moreso to keep ourselves in check/on schedule/focused while shooting since we literally only had one day in which everyone could be present… and also being able to incorporate arthur since he wasn’t able to physically be with us in Taiwan..

if anything, this was a good editing project for me to work on and learn from.. not just cutting/editing, but finding points of transition.. in the video itself, in the music, deciding to place certain scenes for comedic timing, even some instances of sound editing.

i’d have to say the coloring was probably the most time consuming. especially since the lighting was generally inconsistent as we worked with what we had.. fluorescent, tungsten, daylight, cloudiness… you name it, we had to work with it.

aaahhhhh so much more to learn!! another progressive step.

i hope you enjoy this one!

**thoughts on lacking inherent Taiwanese cultural depictions:
in this video it’s mostly landmark/modern locations.. the MRT, Taipei 101, 7Elevens (yes those count as Taiwanese landmarks haha). as a Taiwanese/Taiwanese-American, what am I doing to show where I am, convey my history, and tell my stories without stereotypical (and possibly contrived) portrayals? 

台上兩分鐘, 台下十年功

"two minutes on the stage/ten years of labor off the stage"

SO!.. here are few clips we put up recently on our Instant Noodles Crew Youtube Channel. of course, Youtube has been great for dancers in that we’re able to showcase our craft and our art in an entirely different, more publicly accessible medium. 

More importantly however, is HOW we are arriving at our final product and presentation. I think the process of which dancers (and their crews/groups/teams/companies..) go through is highly under-represented.. and that there should be an active appreciation for the process as their is for the product. for the two minutes on stage at HHI, its safe to say that every group that represented their city/country spent countless hours in the lab. 

for myself, and for Instant Noodles as well, our purpose is to show and make apparent not just WHAT we are doing, but HOW and WHY, be it freestyling, on the stage, or in my room behind locked doors in front of the mirror in my underwear. the decisions, approaches, attitudes, and mentality of us as human beings all contribute to what you see on stage, in the cypher, in the battle, in the performance. we hope that you do appreciate our dancing!! but in digging deeper, we hope to present to you who we are in our process of creation… 

this is the beginning of an effort on our part to share the other side. 

instantnoodlescrew: