Dance Party USA (film)
 |
| Dance Party USA | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Aaron Katz |
| Written by | Aaron Katz |
| Produced by | Brendan McFadden Marc Ripper |
| Starring | Cole Pensinger Anna Kavan Ryan White Natalie Buller Sarah Bing Brendan McFadden Chad Hartigan |
| Music by | Keegan DeWitt |
Release date | 12 March 2006 |
Running time | 67 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $3,500 (estimated) |
Dance Party USA is a 2006 film written and directed by Aaron Katz, and starring Cole Pensinger and Anna Kavan.
The film debuted at the 2006 South by Southwest Film Festival and subsequently played at almost a dozen other festivals around the country and a two week exclusive run at the Pioneer Theatre in New York City.
Reviews for the film were mixed, with praise being given to Katz's subtle direction and the naturalistic performances of the cast, while some reviews labelled it "dull"[1]. The New York Times review stated, "Dance Party USA is a remarkably delicate construction, directed with extraordinary empathy by Aaron Katz". In addition, The New York Sun placed it at number nine on their Top 10 Films of 2006 list.
The film and director have also been mentioned by the media as an important part of a new movement in independent cinema that also includes Joe Swanberg, Andrew Bujalski and Jay Duplass, many of whom got their first exposure at SXSW.
Plot
Apathetic 17-year-old Gus hangs around doing nothing with his buddy Bill most of the time. He likes to tell partially-true stories about all the girls he's slept with and all the drugs he's done and has a "player" reputation.
Jessica is also 17. She doesn't seem to have much in common with anyone anymore – not even her best friend Christie.
The two meet at a 4th of July party. At first, Jessica rebuffs Gus's attempts at conversation because she has seen him before and heard about him from Christie (one of his ex-girlfriends). Gus asks to start over and says that he's really not the kind of guy she thinks he is. Then, he tells her a secret about himself.
Trivia
The film was shot in Portland, Oregon in the summer of 2004 and was made by a small crew of eight friends from The North Carolina School of the Arts.