Director Biography - Daniel Belton and Good Company Arts
Daniel has an extensive performance career, having worked with the Douglas Wright Dance Company, Arc Dance Company and Kim Brandstrup, Irek Mukhamedov, Aletta Collins, Royal Opera Covent Garden, Glyndebourne, Compania Vicente Saez, Tanz Company Gervasi, and Lindsay Kemp Company, among others. He founded Good Company Arts with Donnine Harrison (Aotearoa NZ) in 1997, and has established an international reputation for innovation in stage and screen arts. Many acclaimed projects combining digital and performing arts have been produced through his leadership including commissions to companies such as the Royal New Zealand Ballet. As digital cinema, installation and live performance his work is lauded in New Zealand, Australia, Europe, North and South America, India, the Pacific and Asia. Daniel is a renowned pedagogue in the fields of choreography, film, media arts and design. He carries 30 years professional experience as a dancer, choreographer and film maker. In 2010 Daniel was awarded the Creative New Zealand Choreographic Fellowship and has since been invited to present internationally including for the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space; Dance on Camera New York; Festival Internacional De La Imagen and ISEA, Colombia; BAnQ, Montreal; Ryerson University, Toronto; Leeds Beckett University, UK; Bauhaus University, Weimar; Genius Loci Weimar International Video Mapping Festival, Germany; World Stage Design Festival, Cardiff; Sapienza University and Romaeuropa Festival, Rome; xm:lab with NOW DanceSaar Internationales Tanzfestival, Germany; Cinedans, Amsterdam, Zentrum Paul Klee, Bern; Museo de Arte Moderno, Buenos Aires; Attakkalari India Biennial, Bangalore; Oceanic Performance Biennial Rarotonga; Soundislands Festival Singapore, Arts House Singapore, Aarhus Festival, Denmark, Xintiandi Festival, Shanghai, Dunedin Public Art Gallery, Auckland Art Gallery, Tempo Festival Auckland, Te Papa Tongarewa National Museum of New Zealand and the National Museum of Singapore.Daniel is an accomplished multi-media arts practitioner with close to 3 decades of working in and researching film, cinematography, digital post production techniques, choreography, performing arts, projection mapping, motion capture, fine art, sound, and design. He was the recipient of Creative New Zealand’s Choreographic Research Residency at Otago University 2004, visiting Media Artist in Residence at Massey University 2008, and Arts Council of New Zealand’s Choreographic Fellow for 2010. In 2015 he was made an Arts Foundation of New Zealand Arts Laureate. In 2019 Daniel and Good Company Arts were awarded first place in the prestigious Sino x Niio Illumination Art Prize, Hong Kong.
Born on the Kapiti Coast of New Zealand in 1970, Daniel’s genealogy is Welsh, Irish, Scottish, Hungarian and English. Daniel has affilation to the Samoan family Pereira of Apia on his fathers side. Daniel’s Māori whānau affiliation is through his uncle Dave Tawhai Bodsworth (Iwi are ko Te Ati Awa, ko Rangitane a Wairarapa rātou ko Rangitikei ko Te Tau Ihu o Te Waka a Māui (top of South Island), ko Ngāti Rarua, ko Ngāti Mututunga, ko Toarangatira, ko MuāUpoko. Also likely married into Kai Tahu Te Tau Ihu o Te Waka a Māui.
By Donia Mirkatuli
In many cultures, artistic dance is not merely about moving the body and hands to the rhythm of music. While music and dance have historically been intertwined, these rhythmic movements—whether repetitive or not—often carry spiritual themes and elements, and follow a specific purpose or philosophy. Dance has an ancient legacy in the East, sometimes depicting the ascent of the spirit. Dance in China, for instance, manifests the art, culture, and philosophy of this ancient region, encapsulating profound concepts such as birth, maturity, love, connection, separation, and death. The art and culture of each country are rooted in its history, and China, due to its unique geography, has often preserved its independence and cultural identity. Chinese dance, much like the Chinese writing system (where each form represents a word), possesses an independent structure that expresses the rituals and culture of the Chinese people.
Now the "TAIAO" project aims to combine and showcase the cultures of China, Tibet, and the Māori (the indigenous people of New Zealand) through a series of short films centered on the art of dancing. The fusion of the arts from China and Tibet—two ancient lands of East Asia—with Māori culture, one of the oldest in New Zealand, can be captivating for any audience. The word "TAIAO" means nature and environment, while "Dakini" (or "Khandro" in Tibetan language) refers to a deity of Tantrik. In Tibetan language, a ‘Dakini’ is someone who traverses the sky or roams through space. This term is sometimes poetically translated as “sky dancer” or “sky traveler.” The dancer in the ‘TAIAO’ project embodies a feminine representation of enlightening energy. This dance is deeply connected to spiritual concepts from the East, and the dancers who perform it have undergone years of training; it is an exceptionally challenging dance that requires practice and is accompanied by music created using traditional Chinese and Tibetan musical instruments. This dance expresses themes related to Mother Earth (Papatūānuku) and brings a sense of spiritual awareness and elevation to those who witness and comprehend it.
It is evident that the more complex the theme and purpose of a short film, the more challenging it becomes to connect with the audience. However, even if the viewer of the short film "TAIAO" does not grasp the philosophy and meaning behind this fusion dance, they will still enjoy the artistic quality of the dance and the performers' movements. Ms. Xiao Ke captivatingly blends Chinese, Māori, and Tibetan cultures in this short film, showcasing all their similarities and differences while seemingly leaving a part of her spirit and essence in her dance. Her delicate and rhythmic hand and body movements draw from traditional aesthetics while also embodying modern aesthetic qualities.
Xiao Ke is a dancer and choreographer from China who began her training in traditional Chinese dancing at the age of six, a training process that lasted twelve years. At eighteen, she enrolled at Fudan University in Shanghai, where she independently and innovatively learned modern dance. Her rapid progress was such that she established her own dance studio in 1998. One reason director Daniel Belton, a New Zealand filmmaker, may have chosen a Chinese dancer is that dancing in China has subtle differences compared to other countries and represents a hallmark of the cultural beauty of this land; it is a highly expansive and diverse art form that includes both traditional and modern dance styles. In China, there are various schools to teach dancing; from local dance traditions to ballet and western dancing methods.
Xiao Ke's performance in the film is captured with complete clarity. The movements of this dancer are carefully selected and executed, reflecting the order and rhythm of the nature. Except for brief moments when the girl dances against a white background, most of the film features mountains and trees in the foreground or faint shadows of a forest in the background; these images and shadows fade in and out, symbolizing the inevitable connection between dance and nature. The film's black-and-white format is not merely a simple removal of color; rather, this choice highlights the art of showcasing light, shadow, lines, and shapes. The selection of short dark hair and simple light clothing for the dancer serves to direct the audience's attention away from the dancer's beauty and allure towards the dance itself.
The design of space and setting in the film is also striking, as the dancer merges with choreography and painting. The lines and traces of her hands, head, and body creates a visual allure for the audience. At times, the dancer multiplies into two or three figures before returning to her original singular form. The cinematography is such that ultimately, the artist's body transforms into a work of art itself. The film's score, which has a unique structure, was composed by the Chinese musician Zhou Zihan, who specializes in electronic music. For this composition, he utilized not only electronic instruments but also the flute—one of humanity's oldest musical instruments, dating back thousands of years (China itself is one of the oldest countries known for playing the flute). Throughout history, the sound of the flute seems intertwined with the voice of nature. The reciprocal influence of dance and music in the film is exemplary, as the melodious flute, accompanied by electronic instruments, articulates the fusion of traditional and modern dance through music.
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