Silhouette dancers

[fx830]

Does anyone know where I can find completed projects of Silhouette dancer DVDs? I want to play the looping DVD on a nightclub projector.

I'm willing to buy the DVD/VHS etc... the dancing style should be sexy and seductive.. more to the tempo of R&B / Hip-Hop.

If anyone has been to Las Vagas and visted Caesar Hotel's Lounge-Bar "Shadow", you'll know what I mean.

Thanks for any tips!

[holly]

I am creating a library of this type of girly content, shot professionally on bluescreen with real dancers, but there will be nothing commercially released for many months.... Can I ask you a few questions about what you are looking for?

Do you want a finished DVD, authored to loop endlessly, perhaps an hour to 90 minutes of sharp, high-quality content with different "scenes" of sexy girls (silhouettes only) dancing over computer backgrounds, abstract backgrounds, showgirl "burlesque" backgrounds, etc.?

Would you prefer content that is just go-go dancing (60's platform/cage dancer to modern "fly-girl" choreography), erotic and tittlating (burlesque+exotic dancer), or racy and risque ("lifestyle themes" including imagery of danger, espionage, pulp, femme fatale, etc.)?

Would you be interested in paying more for a customized disc, perhaps with your branding or logo incorporated? Or would you prefer to pay less for a commercially released "generic" disc that would be marketed to other bars/night clubs? How often would you need to update this content? Would you be interested in having choices of themed content, or would you prefer to have each disc be a mix of styles?

Thanks for your input (and everyone's input). As I said, I'm building a library of suitable content, and it helps if I understand what people want. You are not the only one asking for this, and unfortunately with sterile expensive advertising stockvideo (EyeWire body/physique) at one extreme, and gross adult porn videos at the other, no one seems to have made an effort to create fun, sexy, girly content on video.

If you need something specific very soon PM me and I will tell you what I can offer.

[WordVirus23]

Originally posted by holly
Thanks for your input (and everyone's input).

NOINPUT!

..james...
N:VP
PS. awesome idea, you're so right Holly, very hard to find original sexy girl stuff... always the extremes! please keep us updated on your Sexy Gal archive

[unjulation]

guys and girls come on now what do you me you carnt find sexy but non threterning visuals...........
they are all about us, they pervade our lives, they are what they sell us things with
use and abuse
:)

[fx830]

Hi Holly thanks for your reply!

I've been searching for a DVD/VHS with at least 1.5 hrs of material (different girls) so I can loop it at a nightclub... but have been unsuccessful. I operate at nightclubs and these loops would make for an interesting visual at a club. I got this idea from watching the Shadow Lounge in Caesar's Hotel in Las Vegas. There was also a show many years ago hosted by Nia Peebles (spelling?) where there's shadow dancing on the wall of her club.

The dancer would solely be a silhouette with colored backgrounds such as blue, red, regular white etc... Dancers can wear props that shows through the silhouette and for the more erotic scene, they can be shown to take off pieces of clothing. Dancers can use props such as chairs, hats, boas - feathers, etc.. as long as it shows through the shadow. Generally, the girls should be dancing to the tempo of R&B or Hip-Hop... where it's slow enough to be sexy and sexy enough for them to "erotic dance". But i don't mind a bit of a change of pace... lets say to the temp of modern electronica / house music.

I'm looking for the "stereotypical" sexy dancers that would be attractive to the younger 21 - 26 year old nightclub goers. They could do a mixture of go-go platform dancing, modern "flygirl" choreography, and erotic / tittlating dancing - tastefully done.

I will consider customized discs with our company logo, but it all depends on budget. We can definitely discuss possibilities as far as customized DVDs and general market DVDs. If the DVD works well, I would definitely consider purchasing new content once every few months.

Thanks!

[slike]

Hi Holly,

i?m interesting in shadow-dancin girls, too.

I agree with fx830 in type of girls.

Let me know (PM) about prices of different type of content.

I need Loops without logo implemented and with different tastes.


Thanks !

[krokodril]

once you're making this compilation.......
in indonesia the shadowtheatre is a tradition, mostly performers with special dolls, but also traditional dancers....... there's a name for it also...... but i forgot.
might be a nice extra, especially because of the very typical design of the dolls and the seemingly impossible hand movements of the dancers..
good chance that the indonesian tourist office could help you..

[holly]

Thanks Krok. That's not quite the kind of shadow dancers we're talking about here. I think we're going a little more for the Western "tradition" of exotic dancing.

Shadow puppets are called wayang kulit. Thanks for the tip for finding footage of them. I understand gamelan music is all the rage in Ibeza this season. :p http://discover-indo.tierranet.com/images/Wayang/wk_fondjaune.jpg

[webbuddy]

Funny you bring this up. I just got back from Las Vegas from the NAB convention and visited the shadow lounge and wanted to do the same thing. I asked the bartender if they sold copies of the loop but they did not so here I am searching the web for the same thing. I would love to get more info on anything someone creates.

Thanks

[jkaal]

why don't you go to a institute for contemporary dance and performance and ask them for videos of performances... sometimes you find there some of the most beautiful movemnts you can ever imagine... and as long you use under 3 min. of the show you have no problem with the copyright (if that was a problem) ...

[littlecatalyst]

Originally posted by jkaal
why don't you go to a institute for contemporary dance and performance and ask them for videos of performances... .....no problem with the copyright...

while, yes we ought never forget to mention that you can DIY, Holly I'd buy some stuff fo sure.. it would be best to have a simple background to then play around... how much were you thinking of charging?

[syzygy]

Originally posted by jkaal
why don't you go to a institute for contemporary dance and performance and ask them for videos of performances... sometimes you find there some of the most beautiful movemnts you can ever imagine... and as long you use under 3 min. of the show you have no problem with the copyright (if that was a problem) ...

What law does the 3 minute copyright exemption come from?

Dan.

[jkaal]

don't know....

the ppl from TanzQuartier in vienna told me that....

I didn't ask further...

I assume it must be as a promotion, you are allowed to use stuff from their archive but under 3 min. from a piece....

[holly]

I don't know Lil'Cat. I'm still building them (I'll stop when I have a full disc 1hr?) but at the moment I'm a little shy about releasing any content in this group. There is an "official" policy of promoting piracy of video content while software is defended.... I'm not whining, and I realize that nothing could stop one-on-one clip sharing any more than VJC/F can prevent one-on-one serial number sharing, but as a result there is no established norm as to what to charge, either as raw keyable footage or as a finished product. VJs obviously have limited budgets so will be inclined to steal when possible. Clubs and bars have larger budgets so I think that would be my target market.

There is a simplified subscription of gogo-boy footage:
http://www.360presents.com/men.asp
That uses almost the exact same distribution method I was planning (subscription), but mine would have been pre-keyed with effects and appropriate backgrounds (slightly more evolved visually).... If I decide to release the content it will probably be along these lines, but for now I'm keeping it to get me hired for performances.

Any public release is still under consideration. Any thoughts?

[zeist]

great ideas!

id be more inclined to make my own than buy it.. thanks for the inspiration :)!

i have some flash shadow dancers that i got off some guy, fantastic stuff! bongo dancers and girls doing splits and gym type looking movements.

all _b

[Lara]

Definitely smart business move, Holly, especially since relatively new clubs and bars are installing CCTV to playback visuals on LCD screens (I've seen loads in Glasgow and London). Don't forget to charge loads of money to bars/clubs- what would the estimate be from a production company? $$$$$

[littlecatalyst]

i hear ya hollly the last thing you want to do is let something out at $30 and then see every tom dick and veejay playing it at their parties.... Selling to bars (with a higher finish and a zero added to the price) is the way to go if you want to sell a product. of course to get that price (or say 1/2) you will have to do some customizing for each club so they think theyre getting something 100% unique

no worries about not having stuff available. though i bet it wuld be fun to play your stuff-- i guess i will have to go back to the dance institutes.... just fyi my ethics regarding stealing & sampling.... (and later sharing with friends)

a) commercial stuff is a no brainer (though put it in a dvd youre asking for trouble) and by comercial i mean hollywood, tv, musicvideos.....the cretinizing ooze pumped out of the propaganda machine......(even Moonshine don't fit in this category) these things if anyone want the loops, premixes, they're 100% tradeable

b) the shit i had a hard time collecting, that is available here if you try hard (svenkmayer, chris marker, IOTA tapes, old found footage films..... ) it's on a neeed to know basis, but usually i prefere to not dub these for folks, but will if the person is cool super cool, and i don't feel like i will walk in one day a see my sets sloppy cousin on the screens... then trades may be ok, but even then just a little. it's better to buy the art films especially if the artist is still alive (something like matthew barney however fits into category a)

c) other VJ's mix sets I've traded for. NO WAY! ASK THEM YOURSELF. that's like slipping lsd into someones food without their permission. Make your own friends!!

d) stuff i bought from vjs; this even includes the comercial addict tv and mixmastersm even that super crappy spaceoud out one which could have kicked ass but sucked super sucked), other tings from VJs; the answr here is : support the scene. buy these things. pay for them.

thats my ethical stance (not sure if that was needed but its almost 7:30 have to get to bed and sleep already.......


:zzz:

[jkaal]

as far as I know most of the artists with wich i was working they gave me their video material for my use without a problem... Indeed it is much easier to ask direct for permision...

most of them will say yes...

one thing that I hate is too see that somebody is using my material without my permision...

[Kriel]

Originally posted by jkaal
why don't you go to a institute for contemporary dance and performance and ask them for videos of performances... sometimes you find there some of the most beautiful movemnts you can ever imagine... and as long you use under 3 min. of the show you have no problem with the copyright (if that was a problem) ...

Not to raise any red flags, and I may have misunderstood your statement, but this strikes me as dodgy in the extreme. I work with contemporary dancers and choreographers a lot, and much of their material is archived at dance centres. They LOVE when their work is used for programming dance events (IMZ, for an Austrian example), but most would seriously object to seeing their work played out in a club without their direct permission. The institutional administrator might think it's a good idea, and the institution might hold the copyright by virtue of commissioning, but they don't own the "soul" of the work, for lack of a better term.

I think in general it's a good idea to respect the integrity of other artists, and not use their work out of context without their direct and explicit permission. Imagine you had made a beautiful and deeply personal movement work about the loss of a parent (or child), and you walked into a club one night to see it accompanying a Hard House night...

I only bring this up as my partner is a prominent dancer/choreographer. I use a lot of her movement in my work, and vice versa, but we have clearly defined rules about what can be used and what can't in what context ... extremely fair, I think.

[jkaal]

to kriel:



did you see my last post in this thread ?

no comments

[Kriel]

I did, and you're right about talking to people directly. I'm not questioning your practice AT ALL. Your position is clear from your last post. I'm just wanting to address, and perhaps begin a dialogue concerning the broader issue of how artist's work with either other artists or other artists' material -- rather than the copyright discussion.

[jkaal]

no problemo kriel..


as about a discussion... I think that the material comming from an artist is very hard to get it unless you know him or you have some common friends... so to ask then the artist for his tape so that you can make a good material for you is just the next step...

I don't think that is going to happen that you see works from artists played in sone dub club and the artist doesn't know about... the world of artists is so small... and the one of vj's even smaller...

[silk]

Originally posted by jkaal


one thing that I hate is too see that somebody is using my material without my permision...

the only way off getting others work is by getting it at audiovisualizers or the hotline client and if so the permission is granted of the artist .....

permission ?? I would be glad if people showed my work

[littlecatalyst]

Originally posted by silk
the only way off getting others work is by getting it at audiovisualizers or the hotline client and if so the permission is granted of the artist .....
permission ?? I would be glad if people showed my work

back in '93, the first club i played in (every saturday + every second friday, ) about 40 shows into it i noticed that my tech help guy was dubbing every show... after i tried to get the tapes i was fired....a month later i went in there and saw my work being strobbed to almost match the beat.. a) that was totally uncool not glad to see it and also was not on audivisualizer.... Holly said something like this just happened to her a few months ago, and i bet many people here have similar stories....

[littlecatalyst]

Originally posted by Kriel
I'm just wanting to address, and perhaps begin a dialogue concerning the broader issue of how artist's work with either other artists or other artists' material -- rather than the copyright discussion.

yay. i hear you K. working with and/or collaborating with artists can be rewarding and usually all they want is to be asked permission.... I agree with you folks that its best to ask... i have found amazing responses from (still living) film artists when i ak to use their stuff... usually no one minds the recontextualization... all they usually ask is if i make a dvd and want to use their stuff in that then talk with them and figure out proper renumeration.... all is good like that!


(of course try to od that with any clip even 12 frames from a hollywood movie, ha ha ha ha ha) dancers and visual artists have al ong standing tradition of getting along, and a person with a videocamera can be a dancers best friend....

[jkaal]

Originally posted by littlecatalyst


back in '93, the first club i played in (every saturday + every second friday, ) about 40 shows into it i noticed that my tech help guy was dubbing every show... after i tried to get the tapes i was fired....a month later i went in there and saw my work being strobbed to almost match the beat.. a) that was totally uncool not glad to see it and also was not on audivisualizer.... Holly said something like this just happened to her a few months ago, and i bet many people here have similar stories....


uhhh... that's ugly.... It never happend to me till now.... thanks god for small favors.....

[mjz55]

Are we any closer to having anything with shadow dancing?

[45NorthKeyboardist]

I'm desparate for this kind of footage for our band. Help me. Help me. Help me.

[gpvillamil]

Try

http://www.clubvj.com/

seems like what you want.

[mjz55]

Too expensive and I heard not all that great.

[PiedPiper]

hmm black and white shadow dancing, great vj material.
Sometimes i have had girls go backstage and just dance between the projector and the screen, this always gives a nice effect, and since the dancing is live it is pretty much garunteed to be in theme with the music.

I have a few clips of stuff like this, but would LOVE some more. at the moment one of my favorite clips is actually a series of about 8 stills, of a girl dancing that i just splice together and made a clip out of...
If it's pure black and white footage it makes great for matt-ing and then keying so you can have two independent payers of video, with the dancing girl/guy as the matte shape for the two layers...

[gpvillamil]

How about http://www.shadowdancers.tv/

Looks a bit better produced than the other one.

[VGA]

This was posted some time in "Content".
Its not black and white shadow dancers but still lots of really nice silhouette type grooving going on

http://www.spoonwizard.com/divx.php

And download "State of The Art" by Spoonwizard.

Lovely stuff.

[holly]

Originally posted by gpvillamil
How about http://www.shadowdancers.tv/

Looks a bit better produced than the other one.
http://www.shadowdancers.tv/Website/SD-Trailer.gif

That feather boa adds so much class, don't you think?
http://www.queenmother.tv/nycgirl/lavinia/laviimages/lavi4.jpg

It's a shame these people always insist on putting in their own backgrounds.... The girls aren't much for movement, but at least they seem topless and nipple-y. The guys don't appear to be showing any dangly-bits tho.... That's just discrimination. Oughta be illegal....

[gpvillamil]

Originally posted by holly
That feather boa adds so much class, don't you think?

Well, I've been to Burning Man a bunch of times, and to me, a feather boa means cleanup disaster!

anyway...

I've got a bunch of clips of dancers against a green chromakey backdrop, but I don't remember where I put them or what the copyright status is. They came with a DJ/VJ program that came out a while ago. I'll see if I can just make them silhouttes.

[turkish]

every time I look at clubvj.com I feel ill. Must do that less often.

Spoonwizard has some nice little movies but its awful quality... i hate divx.....

Much better off gettin some people round em filming them... provide enough alcohol etc and decent music .... most of my friends turn into instant stars.....

Its always more fun showing friends in a show, makes it more personal....

[kallisti]

well, at least the shadowdancers.tv site is selling their stuff for a reasonable price.... $20 us... at that rate, this sort of stuff is going to spread, get everywhere, and then be burned out..(ha ha)

but anyways, it would be a pain in the ass, but with a bit of work in after effects you can reverse engineer the keying so you can pop in your own backgrounds...

[ShadowDancers1]

go to www.shadowdancers.tv for the best visuals of shadow dancers, our dvds are being used by the world's top djs and vjs and were dominant at the Winter Music Conference in 2005. Many try to immitate but our DVD's featuring top dancers.

[ed4444]

the shadowdancers.tv dvd is the best around, if your looking at production. the silhouettes are clear and sensual, and they provide good backgrounds. the dvd also auto-loops, so when i get a little tipsy i CAN forget about it!

[holly]

hmmm.... 2 first time posters simply RAVING about that dvd. It must really be all that.
:rolleyes:

Dude. Spamming is against the Terms of Service of this site. So is logging in under a pseudonym -- especially when it's to pretend to be someone else to plug your lame product.

Post ONCE and with transparency that you are the company you're advertising. No one respects a spammer, especially one that's dumb enough to just post adverts as your profile. You suck ass with that feather boa crap dude. It probably plays great at dive titty bars that feature scabby trackmarked ho's, but most of the VJs here are looking for better backgrounds. Sell the shadows, WE'll do the real visuals, then come back here and spam away.

By the way, that shadow with the chair had me singing Life eez a cabah-rey, Old Chum. Come to zee cabah-rey! for like a whole fuckin day. yeesh.

[2gtplyd]

There are many registered users who NEVER post comments. I, for one, enjoy gathering amazing ideas from VJ's across this globe via vjcentral.com. Maybe once or twice I would leave a comment, but some people prefer to read, rather then be read.

I respect your opinion, but don't tarnish a mans credibility, or idea or something your not even 100% sure about.

******************************************
...words, words that make me think....because i am not devoted to aimless wandering, i would rather say that i prefer to entrust myself to the straight line, in hope that the line will continue into infinity, making me unreachable...

[vjair]

maybe i have missunderstood you here 2gtplyd, but didnt you register on the same day thi post was made.....

[robotfunk]

and your IP address is the same as ed4444's too. At least ShadowDancers1 (what's with the numbers?) had the decency to use a different IP addy.

[LEVLHED]

it really only gets worse when you sign up for ANOTHER screen name and try to defend yourself..like we don't know what hey are doing, eh?
shadowdancers.tv, respect you for taking the initiative to actually make the dvds, then sell it for a reasonable price. don't take us for a bunch of dense DJs/club-owners though...we are much more saavy than that. Be straight with us and we'll continue to be straight with you! keep up the first-time-poster-to-the-rescue faccade and you'll only make it much much worse...
and if you think yours is the *best*, thats fine..but don't be suprised if you hear some differing opinions here.
I'll hold my opinion until I see the DVD.
but from what I can see, if you want to sell these to the members of this community, you'd do well to whip up a version without the backgrounds!

[dongbamage]

yeah what LEVLHED said...

talk about digging your own grave lol :rolleyes:

no shitty backgrounds, we want chromable goodness not naff swirly patterns messing up our artistic intentions :P

If they were chromaed I'd have bought one by now...

[kvisuals]

no shitty backgrounds, we want chromable goodness not naff swirly patterns messing up our artistic intentions

I would just undersign this statement. anyway - I'll do some shadows the next few weeks. I allready made an offer to my local gogo girls..... It's that easy. pull up some nice white screen, put a dancer and a bright light behind it. than you turn on the music and start the tape. now you have to enjoy the show. be creative.
And the quality - depends only on your cam.

cheers

[3YE]

it's Moderator Time!!

i have been watching, i have been gathering info. despite appearances i have recieved assurances by PM that 2gtplyd and ed4444 are separate entities that share the same dwelling. therefore, unless there is further evidence otherwise, thier posts stay.

to shadowdancers1, and to all other content producers wishing to sell thier product to VJF members, can i recommend dropping the hard sell? try something more approachable like:

Hi, my name's ------ and i work for ------, i'm glad to see some of you interested in our product. if you've got any suggestions or questions you can contact us at (website or email address or phone number for the really brave goes here)

we are all human after all

thank you

M@