A FILM about the destiny of STEVEN MCRAE, Royal Ballet Principal Dancer

IN CINEMAS SOON FRANCE : 17th of APRIL SWITZERLAND : 24th of APRIL UK : Automn THE FILM Steven McRae, principal dancer at the Royal Opera House in London, is well known all over the world. At the age of 33 and at the summit of his career, he collapses on stage. His Achilles snapped while he was dancing in front of a full auditorium. He has seriously damaged his Achilles tendon and cannot move. Everybody believes that his career is over. But dancing is in his blood. And he is going to do whatever it takes to prove them wrong. A Resilient Man tells his story, the story of a dancer, a father, an exceptional athlete supported by his loved ones and determined to achieve the impossible. MAKE THIS FILM! Stephane Carrel – documentary film-maker for over fifteen years “I met Steven two years ago. Just after his accident and just before the Covid pandemic. Fascinated by his story, his strength and his talent I decided to film him with my camera, leveraging my sensibility as a documentary maker. For over fifteen years I have been making films for television, but this time I want to make a film for the silver screen. I envisioned an intimate and sincere film which would deal with the subjects of resilience and injury, the latter a taboo subject in the dancing world. I began this film on my own because the story couldn’t wait. Today, I have a producer who is ready to approach film distributors but we need your help to convince them! We need to show them that a film like this has an audience. The more of us supporting the project, the greater the chance it will get made! WHO IS STEVEN MCRAE? Steven grew up in Australia, in a loving family. His parents ran a garage. When he was 7, he accompanied his sister to a dance lesson. A revelation… At the age of 17 he won first prize at the largest dance competition in the world, in Lausanne, Switzerland. He went to London to join the Royal Ballet School, arriving alone with his mother and a single suitcase. It was the first time he had left Australia. Today, Steven is an acclaimed dancer with a large community of fans, a father of three children and a loving husband. THE CAST SOME SEQUENCES FROM THE FILM Commuting, training, dancing! Seven o’clock in the morning. Steven gets up and sits on the side of the bed. He stretches for a long time. It’s the morning ritual to put his body back into place. Underground platform. Steven is listening enthusiastically to Human or Dancers by The Killers. It’s always the same song. It gets him going in the morning. He moves to the beat, his head, his feet. His entire body is stirring. He wants to dance. Instagram. He posts a photo of himself and a comment: “I can now do a grand jeté again. Thank you Leanne for helping me do this without panicking.” The dancer’s routine. Échappés, ronds de jambe, fondus, battements, sautés, jetés, pirouettes, exercising at the barre... Coach and former principal dancer Leanne Benjamin teaches and encourages him. For the moment, his jumps are not yet up to standard but Leanne is patient and she isn’t going to rush things. He still needs a few solo rehearsals before joining the other members of the ballet. INSIDE THE ROYAL BALLET The stage is steeped in silence. Dimly lit. He hasn’t dared set foot here, either. He looks at it from a distance without daring to move… He still remembers the night of the accident when, overwhelmed by the pain, he uttered the most terrible phrase of his life: “I’ll never dance again. This time it’s over!” At his side, Royal Ballet director Kevin told him: “I never ever want to hear those words again, Steven! Your dancing days aren’t over.” Squats, pull-ups, weights… Steven trains daily according to the programme devised by physiotherapists Shane and Richard, and strength and conditioning coach Gregor. And then he goes to Jane for pilates. Everybody has been busy with Steven since the start of his physiotherapy. Because at the Royal Ballet, taking care of the dancers is a priority! The medical teams and trainers are on hand to support them physically and psychologically throughout their careers, as they would high-level athletes. Changing the culture Like many other professional dancers, Steven was living on adrenalin. He ended up exhausted, unable to move or speak in his dressing room, and he wants to talk about this taboo. He wants to talk about his realization, and his struggle against the rules and standards of the dancing world. His body, now muscular and thoroughly transformed since his accident, highlights his metamorphosis. Returning to the stage: Romeo and Juliet Rome and Juliet is an extremely difficult ballet for the male cast, it is physically and technically the hardest. The portés are almost acrobatic in their virtuosity. On 19 October 2021, two years after his fall, Steven returns to the stage. The audience gives him a standing ovation. Will Steven succeed? Stephane Carrel films this very special day. After the show Steven is in his dressing room with his loved ones. He talks of the emotion, the stress, and the pain too. And now he has to hang in there. After Romeo and Juliet, Steven will be back on stage in several other ballets. The Nutcracker, Swan Lake and Rhapsody, the latter one of the most technical in the repertoire. Will he manage it? AN AESTHETIC, LYRICAL AND BRUTAL FILM Stephane Carrel – documentary film-maker With A Resilient Man, I want to get the audience involved! I want people to feel the powerful emotions. I want to make a film for the cinema. I want to capture reality, and at the same time magnify it. I want to make a particularly beautiful film featuring the body and spirit of Steven McRae. I want to follow him as closely as possible when he dances. Feel him breathe. Live every emotion with him. Film it in 85 mm or 100 mm or in long focus. Dare to make shot compositions that borrow from still photography. Wide shots, very graphic. I like shooting at shoulder height, and leaving empty space around the subject. Film very graphic contours to give the image scale, to interrogate, and above all to accentuate the idea that we’re not telling just another story. Orchestrate the images and the sound I want to astonish viewers, move them with arresting and unexpected images. Alternate between authentic intimate moments and staged sequences. Give some dance scenes a certain timelessness. Use slow-motion and soft focus, breathtaking images, off-centre framing and shadows. Music by composer Sylvain Millepied will accompany the film and magnify the emotions, from the most intimate to the most flamboyant. The sound palette will range from string quartet to symphony orchestra, and include electronic textures. STEPHANE CARREL – documentary film-maker I have been a director and writer of documentaries for television and the web for over fifteen years. I am passionate about culture, cinema, dance and photography. But above all, I love filming and telling human stories. I am a portraitist. Through the stories I film, I endeavour to show dynamic men and women who are trying by every means to bring about progress. Between 2018 and 2020 I directed Planet Chefs, a series of ten films on international chefs working in France. Talented chefs who work closely with local producers and change the conventions of French cuisine by drawing inspiration from their native cultures. Sensitive films featuring chefs talking about their lives, how they arrived in France and their passion for cooking and sharing knowledge. Also, I made the film De Rage et de Danse for Canal+. It follows a class of underprivileged secondary school children in Nanterre as they discover contemporary dance with dancer and choreographer Rodolphe Fouillot, including eight hours of lessons per week over three years. A pilot programme for the Paris Opera and France’s education authority. Today, along with this project, I am working on two new documentary series for the channels Planète+ and ARTE. FILM CREW SYLVAIN MILLEPIED - Composer, pianist and solo flautist. I’m a fully rounded, passionate musician who is naturally attracted to composing for films. Since 2016 I have been composing regularly for French television. Stephane Carrel and I have been working together for some time. My musical universe is very eclectic, ranging from the classical to contemporary electronica. I always try to enhance the image with sensitivity and depth. FLORENCE MAUNIER – Editor For over twenty years I have been editing films for French television (France TV, Arte, France5, Canal+). I specialize in documentaries because I am fascinated by long-term human stories, following the characters over several months. In particular I edited the documentary Emmanuel Macron, les coulisses d’une victoire for the channel TF1 (Dir. Yann L’Henoret). I have known Stephane for twenty years and have edited his most recent films (De rage et de Danse, Planet Chefs...). GABRIEL CHABANIER – Producer Since 1991 I have produced a hundred or so documentaries that have been broadcast throughout the world. I am fascinated by the real world and people in every aspect of life, society, history, art, music and… dance. I chose to produce Stephane’s project so that the greatest number of viewers can get to see this documentary about resilience, determination, joy and sadness, and the incredible humanity which centres on the extraordinary dancer Steven McRae. JULIA FANGEAUD – Crowdfunding manager I have been working in documentaries for more than ten years as a production manager and producer. Convinced that this film merits reaching its audience, I am delighted to be giving Stephane the benefit of my expertise and support in the field of crowdfunding. FLAIR PRODUCTIONS Established in 1998, FLAIR has produced over 400 hours of broadcast and digital content, and has organized filming in more than twenty-five countries. The company develops documentaries and fiction on the themes of people, astonishing destinies and social issues that are rarely addressed in film. Above all, we offer solutions. Flair Production produced the film De rage et de danse by Stephane Carrel. Watch the demo: If, like us, you believe that this film is worth making : GET INVOLVED! #stevenmcrae #stephanecarrel #documentaire #cinema #danse #resilience #toutestpossible #anythingispossible #ballet #crowdfunding