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The Yellow Room

In a series of increasingly lush and intimate encounters, two dancers are forced to confront each other and themselves, exploring the expansion of identity beyond solely masculine or feminine.

  • Kitty McNamee
    Director
  • Kitty McNamee
    Producer
  • Jim Doyle
    Producer
  • Jessica Gadzinski
    Key Cast
  • Junji Dezaki
    Key Cast
  • Jim Doyle
    Director of Photography
  • Lachlan Turczan
    Camera Operator
  • Arielle Zakowski
    Editor
  • Ali Helnwein
    Composer
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Dance, Experimental
  • Runtime:
    4 minutes 46 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    July 19, 2017
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    HDV
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1.78
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Kerry Film Festival
    Killarney, Co. Kerry
    Ireland
    October 20, 2017
    World Premiere
    Nominated for Best Original Score
  • Olympia Film Festival
    Olympia, Washington
    United States
    November 10, 2017
    North American Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Best Shorts Competition

    United States
    Award of Merit - Women Filmmakers
  • Contact Dance Film Festival
    Portland, Oregon
    United States
    April 13, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Paris Independent Film Festival
    Paris
    France
    November 19, 2017
    WINNER - BEST EXPERIMENTAL FILM
  • Short Waves Festival
    Poznán
    Poland
    March 20, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Dance Camera West
    Los Angeles, California
    United States
    April 12, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Fastnet Film Festival
    Schull
    Ireland
    May 23, 2018
    Shortlisted - Best Arthouse Film
  • River Film Festival
    Padova
    Italy
    June 29, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Dublin International Film Festival
    Dublin
    Ireland
    Semi Finalist
  • Oxford International Film Festival
    Oxford
    United Kingdom
    May 12, 2018
  • Cascadia Dance & Cinema Festival
    Vancouver
    Canada
    June 3, 2018
  • Santa Cruz International Film Festival
    Santa Cruz
    Argentina
    April 27, 2018
    Best Experimental Film
  • WorldFest-Houston International Film & Video Festival
    Houston, Texas
    United States
    Award Winner
  • Breckenridge Film Festival
    Breckenridge, CO
    United States
    September 20, 2018
  • Seattle Transmedia & Independent Film Festival
    Seattle, WA
    United States
    July 26, 2018
  • Middlebury New Filmakers Festival
    Middlebury, VT
    August 25, 2018
  • Skyline Indie Film Fest
    Winchester, VA
    United States
    September 8, 2018
  • CAPITOL Dance & Cinema Festival
    Washington, DC
    United States
    September 8, 2018
  • HollyShorts Film Festival
    Los Angeles, CA
    United States
    August 9, 2018
  • Light Moves Festival of Screendance
    Limerick
    Ireland
    November 9, 2018
  • 30 Girona Film Festival
    Girona, Catalonia
    Spain
    September 28, 2018
  • San Francisco Dance Film Festival
    San Francisco, California
    United States
    October 13, 2018
  • Liverpool Film Festival
    Liverpool
    United Kingdom
    October 14, 2018
  • Dance on Camera Festival
    Port Townsend, WA
    United States
    March 9, 2019
  • Blue Danube Film Festival
    Vienna
    Austria
    November 24, 2018
  • Newport Beach Film Festival
    Newport Beach, CA
    United States
    April 25, 2019
  • Grand Park's Our LA Voices
    Los Angeles, CA
    United States
    April 27, 2019
  • Austin Dance Festival
    Austin, Texas
    United States
    April 3, 2020
Director Biography - Kitty McNamee

Los Angeles-based Kitty McNamee is a highly regarded choreographer and director working across media. McNamee earned distinction from Dance Magazine as an artist with “an outsize talent for that most elusive gift, originality.” Kitty began her career as the Artistic Director of Hysterica Dance Co., a consistently prolific and creative collective that redefined dance in Los Angeles. Kitty’s work has been enriched by collaborations with composers, filmmakers, directors and writers on live performance, TV and film projects.

Recent work includes LA Opera’s Tales of Hoffman, San Diego Opera’s La Traviata, Target’s “A New Kind of Strong” campaign, Secret Cinema’s groundbreaking live performances with Laura Marling in London, the World Premiere of Colony Collapse commissioned by Oregon Shakespeare Festival and The Fantasticks at Pasadena Playhouse.

Kitty loves working with actors and is known for her ability to draw out organically nuanced performances. She has created for Paz Vega, Julianne Hough, Margaret Cho, Vanessa Williams, Vittorio Grigolo, Lily Tomlin, Anna Netrebko, Rolando Villazon, the boys of 90210 and the ladies of the L- Word. Kitty has loved getting down and dirty choreographing Beautiful and Twisted, Petals on the Wind and Lizzie Borden for Lifetime. She has created movement for music artists Laura Marling, Belly, Fono, Josh Kelley, Kait Weston, Kinky, Hecuba, Nicole Turley, Henry Wolfe and Ariana Delawari.

Concert stage work includes RIFT commissioned by Marin Alsop and Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, colony for LA Ballet (both composed by Anna Clyne) and the creation of the new ballets Traces and Transit for National Choreographer's Initiative.
Kitty collaborated with music icon Easy Mike to create a new hip/hop ballet of “On the Waterfront” for Muse/ique. Opera credits include Tales of Hoffman, Lucia de Lammermoor, Don Carlo and La Rondine for LA Opera, La Traviata for LA Opera, San Francisco Opera and San Diego Opera, Romeo and Juliette for LA Opera and Lyric Opera of Chicago. She has a long and fruitful relationship with the LA Philharmonic, where she has choreographed, directed and developed new productions including Esa-Pekka Salonen’s Wing on Wing.

On the commercial front clients include Target, Mercedes, Adobe, GreyAnt, Uniqlo, Proactiv, Wynn Hotels, Devlinhair/Novartis, Flash on the Beach, MADD, Hexbug and Magic Sofa.

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Director Statement

“The Yellow Room” Director’s Statement
Kitty McNamee

I’ve choreographed many live projects that evaporate as soon as the curtain comes down; I’ve been longing to create something lasting on film. DP and co-producer Jim Doyle shares my obsession with dancers and their ability to transmit story without the use of words. We decided to capture two dancers who each had a unique expression of both strength and fragility in a very confined space and see what happened! “The Yellow Room” is an opportunity to look beyond gender and catch a glimpse of the beautiful duality that each of us possesses.
Collaboration is key for me and the film provided an opportunity to create with an incredible team –they added a balance and richness to my experience – I think that is transmitted throughout the film.
Current fascinations include human nature, beauty, behavior, personality, duality, feminine/masculine and impulse.

Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves. Carl Jung