Dance Lexie Dance is a 1996 short film made in Northern Ireland.[1] The two principal characters are a widower, Lexie, and his daughter, Laura, who live in Derry. Laura becomes keen on Irish stepdance and on joining Riverdance when she grows up. Traditional Irish dancing is practiced by Irish Catholic families. Lexie and his daughter are Protestant, but Lexie relents and encourages his daughter. Self-taught, Laura enters a dance contest across the River Foyle in a Catholic district.[2] The film ends as Laura teaches her father the first steps of the dance.
Dance Lexie Dance | |
---|---|
Directed by | Tim Loane |
Written by | Dave Duggan |
Produced by | Pearse Moore |
Starring | B. J. Hogg Kimberley McConkey |
Cinematography | Eugene McVeigh |
Edited by | Declan Byrne |
Music by | Jules Maxwell |
Production company | Raw Nerve Productions |
Distributed by | Northern Lights |
Release date |
|
Running time | 14 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Ruth Barton writes of the film's structure, "Symbolically, the film illustrates its theme of bridging divides – between father and daughter, Protestant and Catholic traditions, life and death – by the device of the boat Lexie (B. J. Hogg) pilots across the Foyle to and from his job, itself a mixed workplace. Finally, Laura performs in a Féis (dancing competition) in honour of which the boat is decked out in red, white, and blue bunting."[3]
Accolades
editDance Lexie Dance was nominated in the Best Live Action Short Film category at the 70th Academy Awards.[4]
The film was included on the ALA Notable Children's Videos list in 1999.[5]
References
edit- ^ Film credits available at "Dance Lexie Dance (1996)". Northern Ireland Screen. Archived from the original on 2012-04-02. Retrieved 2011-09-18.
- ^ "Dave Duggan/ Dramatist and novelist". Derry/Londonderry City of Culture 2013. July 8, 2010. Archived from the original on March 8, 2012. Retrieved September 18, 2011.
- ^ Barton, Ruth (2004). Irish National Cinema. Psychology Press. p. 176. ISBN 978-0-415-27894-2.
- ^ AMPAS[permanent dead link ]
- ^ https://alair.ala.org/bitstream/handle/11213/19228/1999-NCV.pdf
Further reading
edit- Dance Lexie Dance at IMDb
- Dance Lexie Dance at Northern Ireland Screen's Digital Film Archive