Are you interested in becoming a professional dancer? While being talented in dance is important, there are other critical skills that need to be acquired to be successful in the dance and entertainment industry, such as knowing how to perform on camera. There are many differences between dancing on stage and performing in front of a full camera crew that a dancer looking into a professional career may not realize. With the right tools and direction, any serious dancer can learn to perform in front of a camera and become successful in the professional dance industry.
First, let's start with the basics. Why does it even matter? To put it simply, the present-day dance is ruled by film. Whether you are an aspiring dancer or are already signed to a talent agency, such as Mac Talent Agency in Detroit, Michigan, you must be comfortable with being on camera. If you are just starting your professional dance career, one of the top ways to get your name out there is by posting videos of yourself dancing on social media. If you are already at the peak of your dance career, chances are most of the work you are doing is being filmed on camera. The sooner you become familiar with dancing in front of the camera, the quicker your career can blossom.
By now, you probably realize that the ability to dance on camera is important to possessing a professional career in dance. Why is it so different from performing in a studio or on stage? For starters, when you perform on stage, you prepare yourself for a one-shot performance and put all your energy into that one take. Yet when you are dancing for a production with a camera crew, they will most likely want to break up the full dance and shoot it in multiple takes. You may even have to repeatedly perform the same dance snippet over and over before the director is happy with that part of the dance and moves on—making it a much slower process. Stamina is key for shoots like these; you have to make sure your energy lasts throughout the day while still ensuring you look enthusiastic for each take on camera.
Another way that dancing on camera is different from performing on stage is that you have to learn how to dance in relation to the cameras. When performing on stage, you have the entire space to utilize and only have to focus on your choreography. Add in the camera crew and you now have the additional challenge of figuring out your angles and how your movements come across on camera. You will quickly learn that what works in the studio will not always work on camera!
If you are a dancer considering a professional career, I highly recommend you to check out the Jordan Mac Studios Dance Video Workshop programs. They offer three different summer workshops that give dancers the opportunity to be hands-on with the video production process and what it’s like to dance in front of the camera. The workshops will produce a professionally choreographed and entertaining dance concept video that students will be featured in. Check out our previous dance videos on our Jordan Mac Studios Youtube page and be sure to register for a Dance Video Workshop!
-Natalie H.