Press kit

Sant & Usant and Wide House presents
Life as a prima ballerina over 30 is tough enough for Maiko
when she decides to start a family...
Sant & Usant and Wide House present
Sant & Usant and Wide House present
S Y N OPS IS
Maiko’s destiny was decided before she was born.
Her name Maiko means dancing child.
SHORT SYNOPSIS
Maiko: Dancing Child tells the story of 14-year-old Maiko whose destiny was decided before
she was born. Her name Maiko means dancing child. Her mother, the driving force behind her
career, sold their home to send 14-year-old Maiko to the most prestigious dancing schools in
Europe. Maiko knew she couldn’t return to Japan as a failure. Today she is 32 and on top of her
career as a prima ballerina at the Norwegian National Ballet. But Maiko is not a young dancer
anymore and talented newcomers are fighting for her position. Competition is getting tougher when Maiko decides to start a family...
We follow Maiko through a crossroad in her life, where she is forced to make decisions that
might jeopardize everything she has worked for.
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Maiko: Dancing Child
S Y NOP S I S
LONG SYNOPSIS
Maiko: Dancing Child is a film about a woman whose tough training and hard discipline has
brought her to the top of her career as a prima ballerina in the Norwegian National Ballet. She
was only a girl when she left her family and her hometown in Japan for Europe with her sights
set on becoming a professional dancer. With her mother as the driving force behind her career,
her family sold their home and car to afford to send Maiko to the most prestigious dancing
schools in Europe.
When we meet Maiko she is 32 years old and has positioned itself as one of the leading prima
ballerinas in the Norwegian National Ballet. She is not a young dancer anymore, but is in good
shape and feels she is still capable to push. But Maiko has also reached a time in her life where
she longs for her own family. The ballet director wants to build the company and to do that she
needs to bring more and bigger solo-dancers to the company.
Maiko enters a tough time when she must prove she deserves a place among the best dancers
while her dream of one day becoming mom grows stronger.
The film captures Maiko at a crossroad in her life where she fights to stay on top and follow her
own personal aspirations.
Maiko: Dancing Child
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Sant & Usant and Wide House present
DI R EC T OR ’S B IOG RA PHY
Sant & Usant and Wide House present
CH ARACTER B I OGRA P H Y
Åse Svenheim Drivenes
Maiko Nishino-Ekeberg
Åse Svenheim Drivenes (1977) was born in Tromsø in northern Norway. Her directorial debut was the
documentary film, Our Man in Kirkenes (2010) which premiered at Tromsø International Film Festival
(TIFF) and was screened in the Nordic countries. Åse’s second film I am Kuba, an international co-production with Poland and Germany, was released in 2014 and won the main award at Tromsø International Film Festival and The Norwegian Documentary Film Festival. Maiko: Dancing Child is Åse’s first
feature length film.
Maiko Nishino-Ekeberg was born in 1980 in Osaka, Japan. She studied ballet with Sachiyo Hashimoto and Hans Meister, before she started at The Royal Ballet School in London in 1996. In 1999 she
was hired by the Norwegian National Opera & Ballet and appointed Principal Dancer in 2005, the
same year in which she received the Norwegian Dance Critics’ Award for the role of Odette/Odile in
Swan Lake. In 2009 she was awarded the inaugural Tom Wilhelmsen Opera and Ballet Prize. Maiko
has performed in classical lead roles such as Tatiana in Onegin and the title roles in Giselle and Cinderella. Her credits also include modern ballets such as Kylian’s Bella Figura, Heart’s Labyrinth and
León & Lightfoot’s Softly as I Leave You.
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Maiko: Dancing Child
Maiko: Dancing Child
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Sant & Usant and Wide House present
MEET TH E PRO DU C ERS
DI REC T O R ’ S N OT ES
TONE GRØTTJORD-GLENNE
Tone Grøttjord-Glenne has a Master in documentary film direction from the
National Film and Television School in London. Her movies ”Brothers” and ”Prirechnyy” have been shown at festivals around the world. In 2006 she founded
Sant & Usant and started productions of documentary films. Since then she has
established Sant & Usant as a fast-growing company in the Norwegian and European film environment and has produced, together with her partner Anita Rehoff
Larsen, films such as ‘Bravehearts’ (2012), ‘When the Boys Return’ (2012) and ‘I am
Kuba’ (2014).
ANITA REHOFF LARSEN
The first time I saw Maiko on stage it felt like it was just me and her in the room. She
communicated emotions that I could not put into words. What impressed me the most
was her strong artistic expression and her presence on stage. It was hard to imagine
her anywhere else than right there.
When I get to know Maiko she is 31 years old and is very ambitious with her career.
Despite her vast experience she is hungry for more. At the same time she is dreaming
of becoming a mother. However she is not willing to compromise. She wants her career
and she wants a family. It’s all or nothing...
The magical dance and the personal drama. I thought it was an incredibly exciting universe to explore. With the dance as a universal means of expression, the story about
Maiko had an exciting visual potential. I wanted to use dance to better understand
Maiko and express her feelings. That was what I liked so well with Maiko. She spoke to
me through the dance.
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Maiko: Dancing Child
Anita Rehoff Larsen has studied film production at the University of Sunderland
in the UK. She directed several short films in Sant & Usant before she started to
work as a producer in 2010. Since 2012 she has also performed as partner in the
company. Anita is an Eurodoc graduate from 2012 and has developed relations
with co-production partners in Sweden, Poland and Denmark. Anita is developing
several projects at the moment with international directors.
COMPANY PROFILE
In 2015 Sant & Usant celebrates 10 years as a production company dedicated to
documentaries. Sant & Usant has since their first premiere in 2007 released 10
films and won the award for best documentary at the Norwegian Documentary
Film Festival and the prestigious Norwegian ‘Emmy’ award for Best Documentary.
In 2010 Sant & Usant ventured into the international market with the development of international films and have the last 5 years focused on international
co-productions. In 2012 the company premiered with two international films in
the competition at IDFA - ‘Bravehearts’ and ‘When the Boys Return’. The films have
later been screened and won awards at film festivals all over the world. The company’s latest film was ‘I am Kuba’ that won the Tromsø Palm at Tromsø Int. Film
Festival, The Firefly at the Norwegian Documentary Film Festival and the GermanPolish Tadeusz-Mazowiecki award.
Maiko: Dancing Child
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Sant & Usant and Wide House present
CREDI TS
English title
Maiko: Dancing Child
Type
Feature length documentary
Duration
70 min/58 min
International Release
June 2015
Format
HD, DCP/HDCAM
Screen ratio
1:1,77
Sound format
Stereo 5.1
Director
Åse Svenheim Drivenes
Producers
Tone Grøttjord-Glenne and Anita Rehoff Larsen
Editor
Stefan Sundlöf
DOP
Håvard Fossum
Music
The Norwegian National Opera Orchestra
Languages
English, Japanese
Main Character
MAIKO NISHINO-EKEBERG
Character
NICOLAI NISHINO-EKEBERG
Character
EILIF ATSUO NISHINO-EKEBERG
Character
ITSUE NISHINO
Character
INGRID LORENTZEN
Production Company
Sant & Usant
Contact Person
Anita Rehoff Larsen
Address
P.box 6654 St. Olavsplass, 0129 Oslo, Norway
Telephone
+47 95033305
E-mail
[email protected]
Production Country
Norway
Co-production
NRK, Norway
Financed by
Broadcasters involved
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Maiko: Dancing Child
FESTIVALS & SALES AG ENT
Company
Wide House
Contact Person
Anais Clanet
Address
9 Rue Bleue, Paris, France
Telephone
+33 1 53950464
E-mail
[email protected]
Norwegian Film Institute, The European Media Programme, Nordic
Film and TV Fund, The Norwegian Audio and Visual Fund
Festival Distribution
Norwegian Film Institute & Wide House
NRK, SVT, RUV, SRF, TVO
Links
www.facebook.com/maikofilm
www.santogusant.no/project/maiko-dancing-child
www.facebook.com/santogusantdocumentary
Maiko: Dancing Child
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Sant & Usant and Wide House present
Sant & Usant and Wide House present
REVI EW S
‘One of my top “Must See Festival Films”
..leaps off the screen with visual and emotional beauty.... Interesting
camera work diverts attention beyond the expected’ - MovieSharkDeblore.com
‘...dramatic film that explores the life
and struggles of a ballet dancer’ - Eyesin
Reviews from the World Premiere of Maiko: Dancing Child at Los Angeles Film Festival on 14 June 2015
‘This film is as honest and powerful
as it is beautiful in its successful attempt to com-
Pictures from the Premiere Source: Getty Images
municate the difficulties of becoming a mother and reaching
your career goals. ’
- Radio Interview: on WKCC’s The Reel Focus
‘Visually stunning film’
- filmfestivals.com
‘an affecting, empowering portrait of a woman who
can’t and won’t accept failure’... a celebration of the complex-
ity of women, that they can be mothers and nurturers - cromeyellow.com
‘Nishino-Ekeberg is physically stunning and camera-ready: all long lines and
flawless features. Her
story is one of sheer ambition, determination and discipline.’
- Jesther Entertainment
‘Maiko’s grace can barely conceal the strain’
- Rafu Shimbun et al
She talks forthright like a feral predator... You believe
her. She’s at her most expressive when she’s working her craft...’
- Cinelinx.com
Links:
1. Pictures from the Premiere: http://www.gettyimages.de/detail/nachrichtenfoto/
general-view-of-the-atmosphere-at-the-maiko-dancing-nachrichtenfoto/477188692
2. http://www.filmfestivals.com/blog/los_angeles_film_festival/world_premiere_
debut_at_the_la_film_festival_for_maiko_dancing_child_directed_by_se_svenheim_driv
3. http://cromeyellow.com/laff-15-maiko-dancing-child/
4. http://jestherent.blogspot.no/2015/06/laff-2015-maiko-dancing-child.html
5. http://www.rafu.com/2015/06/maiko-dancing-child-to-premiere-at-l-a-film-fest/
6. https://liachang.wordpress.com/2015/06/14/la-film-festival-presents-world-premiere-of-maiko-dancing-child-on-june-14/
7. http://www.cinelinx.com/interviews/item/7860-a-glimpse-behind-the-scenesof-maiko-dancing-child-with-director-ase-svenheim-drivenes-and-subject-maikonishino.html
8. http://moviesharkdeblore.com/site/festivals/los-angeles-film-festival-2015-mustsee-festival-films/?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=facebook&utm_
source=socialnetwork
9. http://www.eyesin.com/article/book-film-music/film/maiko-dancing-child-documents-her-road-to-fame/
10. http://www.reelhonestreviews.com/?p=1433