The body as archive (2016) is a documentary film based on research that considers ways in which the dancer’s body can be regarded as archive.

Dancers create, accumulate and carry knowledge – where is it stored and what do they explore through their practice? Is it possible to locate kinetic knowledge and understand its connection between subjective vision and objective realisation?

The body as archive explores the role of a dancer in the preservation of collective knowledge, its transmission and its accessibility.

Director: Michael Maurissens
Written by: Michael Maurissens and Darko Dragičević
First Assistant Director: Darko Dragičević
Director of Photography/Editor: Alexander Basile
Music composed by: Gregor Schwellenbach
Produced by: CÁRRE BLANC PRODUCTIONS
Funded by: TANZFONDS ERBE – Kulturstiftung des Bundes, Film- und Medienstiftung NRW
1st Assistant Camera: Janosch Pugnaghi
Gaffer/Sound: Christian Schuermann
Boom operator: Simon den Hartog
Grading: Jan-Peter Horns
Offline Editor: Jens Vetter
Catering: Moritz Erian
Translation: Karoline Strys
Advisor: Dr. Scott deLahunta
With the participation of: Prof. Dr. Maaike Bleeker, Allison Brown, Prof. Patrick Haggard, Fabrice Mazliah, Jone San Martin, Michael Schumacher, Prof. Dr. Gerald Siegmund, Prof. Wolf Singer, Dr.-Ing. Michael Steinbusch, Thomas Thorausch, ldiko Toth, Jonas Dometshauser

MICHAEL MAURISSENS is a Belgian performer, choreographer and filmmaker based in Germany. After evolving as a professional dancer in state theaters and companies across Germany, he founded the MichaelDouglas Kollektiv. The dancers collective’s focus is on the development of collective creation methods fostering dialogue at the interfaces to disciplines such as communication, architecture, choreography and conflict resolution. For several years now, Maurissens has been working with media in the fields of graphic design, photography and film - as filmmaker, cameraman and editor. His films explore the role of the body as an archive and his interdisciplinary approach has enabled him to produce films and engage in cooperations in China, Japan, Uruguay, Tanzania, India, Spain, Morocco, Palestine, Italy, Benin, Turkey, Switzerland, Egypt and Senegal.