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IN THE BLOOD (35mm, b&w and color, 12 min) is a boxing dance film about the fight against time and the brink between life and death. Filmmaker Jodi Kaplan brings a choreographic sensibility to this experimental short that explores the "dance" of boxing, a sport that pushes participants to their utmost physical limits. The title references the belief in Jewish mysticism that the physical aspect of the soul (nefesh) is carried in the blood. It is this "life force" that drives our every action.

Shot in twelve "rounds" (paralleling the number in a boxing match), In The Blood integrates blackouts to separate each section. Flashes of stills by world-renowned dance photographer Lois Greenfield (taken on location and in the studio) illuminate peak moments of the fight. Moments of the match are frozen in time, akin to what might be going through a boxer's mind as the fight progresses. Live sounds recorded on location add an immediacy to the real-time sequences, and are later manipulated with abstract tones to create an altered sense of reality.

Release is slated for 2016.

 
  Jodi Kaplan is an internationally renowned filmmaker whose work features the movement of the human body. Her award-winning shorts have screened at over one hundred festivals, museums and venues worldwide including Dance on Camera at Lincoln Center, New Directors/New Films at the Museum of Modern Art, and at the World's Fair in Lisbon, Portugal. Her work has also been broadcast on PBS television and The Sundance Channel. Awards and honors include the Gold Plaque in Experimental Film from the Chicago International Film Festival, Prize for Tomorrow's Cinema from Festival International du Film Independent du Brussels, Cinematography Award from the Northampton International Film Festival, and Best Experimental Short from the Worldfest/Houston International Film Festival.

Pushing the boundaries of dance film, Jodi has shot movement in alternative locations and mediums that cannot be reproduced outside of film form - against a mirror (Chorea), underwater (Immersion), beneath a trampoline (Wall and ONTO), and now inside a boxing ring (In The Blood).

Jodi views filmmaking as "sculpting in time," and the creation of her works akin to making "visual poetry." Her films evoke a sense of timelessness while exploring the brink of life and death. They capture moments of truth, and reveal the ineffable nature of what it means to be human.

Like a "method" actor who delves into a character's inner life, Jodi considers herself a "method" director, and immerses herself mentally as well as physically in her subject matter. In preparation for In The Blood, Jodi has spent the last three years researching and training at various boxing clubs around New York City.

A graduate of Columbia University's MFA Film program (2001), Jodi received honors in directing coursework. She has a BA from Smith College with High Honors in Religion and Philosophy (Phi Beta Kappa), and spent a year at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland in Divinity School. She has also been a Fulbright Scholar in dance in Jamaica, where she documented the religious dance ceremony the Kumina; a Wallenberg Scholar in Israel where she received a diploma in International Relations from Hebrew University; and has toured as a guest artist throughout France, Scotland, England, Portugal, Israel, the Czech Republic/Slovakia, the Caribbean and the United States. Jodi has taught seminars in film at such venues as the Film and Video Workshop in Rockport, Maine with editor Evan Lottman, and has twice been an artist-in-residence at Yaddo in Saratoga Springs, NY.

In addition to her film work, Jodi is a member of the Screen Actors Guild and the New York Academy of Science. She is also a former dancer and choreographer, and has run her own dance booking agency for the past decade www.bookingdance.com.

As an independent filmmaker, Jodi works under the auspices of Jodi Kaplan Films. She and pioneer dance photographer Lois Greenfield have recently established Elijah Films, a production company for their collaborations. They are currently embarking on an international feature film exploring ritual dance and prayer around the world.

 

Thanks

Thanks to the wonderful cast and crew for their creative contributions to In The Blood!

Special Thanks:
Lois Greenfield Productions for its fiscal sponsorship and creative collaboration.


Bruce Silverglade of Gleason's Gym www.gleasonsgym.net and Martin Snow of Trinity Boxing Club www.trinityboxing.com for their incredible support of the project.

Thanks to the following companies for their amazing production support/sponsorship:
Joe Guzman of Everlast www.everlast.com
Kevin Schill of Bron-Kobold
www.bron-kobold-usa.com
Charles Tammaro of CSC www.cameraservice.com
Domenic Rom of Postworks
www.pwny.com
New England Coffee Company www.newenglandcoffee.com
Paola Bottero of Paola's Restaurant www.paolasrestaurant.com
and of 50 Carmine www.50carmine.com

And appreciation of services from the following vendors:
Mona Jackson of PostWorks
Earl Wallace of Unilux
Tisha Green of Everlast
Christine Fazio of Eastern Effects
Rich Kalinsky of Raw Stock
David Householder of Hot Lights

And gratitude to the following individuals:
David Itskowitch of DiBella Entertainment
Richard Brick
Tad Clay
Bob Jackson of Gleason's Gym

A very special thanks to the following for their support and input during the test shoot:
Edgar Santana of Santana Boxing www.santanaboxing.com
Peter Quillin aka Kid Chocolate www.myspace.com/thekidchocolate

Jodi Kaplan also extends her thanks to her family and friends.

A very special bravo to Eva Kaplan for her unwavering commitment to Jodi Kaplan’s artistic growth.


 
  Jodi Kaplan Films 2007 | top images by: Lois Greenfield | design by bartokweb.com