“Incredibly dramatic and compelling, upon first viewing we knew we were in for a treat.”

A short story expressed through the art of dance about a young outcast.

We’re always excited to watch films from our experimental category as you never know what to expect. Which made watching director Nina McNeely’ ‘She Dreamt Alone’ all the more enjoyable. The film shows great attention to detail and creativity that you don’t find often!

The opening scene is incredibly dramatic and compelling, upon first viewing we knew we were in for a treat and it didn’t disappoint. McNeely has brought together a group of talented dancers and crew to create a totally unique piece that deserves multiple watches.

The film noir colour grade is a nice touch as it creates a uniformed look to all the dancers and the backdrop that’s mesmerising. It allows you to really focus on what’s in each frame and pay attention to the intricate choreography. Every shot is full of movement from the dancers which at times feels rightfully chaotic.

Which brings us to the lead dancer played by Maddie Cundiff who delivers a totally raw and immensely powerful performance that’s truly captivating and hard to look away from. The emotion and precision that Cundiff communicates through the screen is superb. Considering the use of wide angles to capture the large cast, she is still able to convey plenty of emotion through actions alone. The backing dancers all hold up as well and bring an emotive contrast for Cundiff to play off. Everything about the cast is on point in this film.

The same can be said of the cinematography from Daniel Phakos who doesn’t miss a single moment. Considering the large cast and unique space, this looked like a challenging film to capture. But Phakos captured it with a great level of experience in storytelling. The music from Hyperdaze is incredibly fitting, we’re not sure if the film was made for the track or if it was made for the film but it works. It’s as abstract and unique as the film and both compliment each other really well, giving us plenty of ups and downs to keep you engaged.

What’s especially impressive here is that Nina McNeely is also the choregrographer, which should come as no surprise considering the unique nature of the film. Only someone with enough experience would tackle a film like this and McNeely certainly has plenty of that having worked with Björk, The Weeknd, Rihanna, Foo Fighters, Alicia Keys and more.

It’s a refreshing film to see that explores artistic choreography using the human body to create a compelling story about a young outcast that’s both gripping and powerful…

— APEX Film Awards