A documentary film by Joey Kan

Running Time: 30 mins

Available on miniDV (NTSC) and DVD

Synopsis

'Break Borders,' a 30 minute documentary spanning Boston, Melbourne, Hong Kong, and Macau, follows several "b-boys" through their daily lives, practice sessions and fierce "b-boy battle" competitions. "Break Borders" is the filmmakers personal journey through 2 years of "b-boying".

Director Statement

Breakdancing/b-boying has come and gone, but now it is back again. Unlike other films on this topic that educate people about the history of "b-boying", this takes a closer look at the dancers behind the moves, the "b-boys" of today. I set out to show the differences and similarities in the "b-boys" and "b-girls" from different countries. Realizing there is not a wide understanding of what a "b-boy" is, I felt the need to tell the story of these dancers. I hope to share my experience so that more people may understand a little more of what "b-boy" culture is and accept it as something positive and growing in the world.

I first began my interest in b-boying when I was living in Boston. After seeing some shows on the street I was attracted by the "cool" stunts that the dancers could perform and the aggressive energy that came out while dancing.
I decided to learn, following some of the bboys to their practice spots which would include the street, school facilities and a church on weekdays. At first it was intimidating asking the more experienced bboys how to do certain moves. They seemed larger than life because of the difficulty of their moves, but I found they were happy to share their knowledge.

After a short period of time I witnessed my first b-boy "jam", which is a breaking competition. It is very difficult to truly understand what b-boying is all about until you start going to b-boy jams. Breakers from out of state drove down to ‘represent’ at the jam. It feels like going to one of those conventions for star trek, only its for B-boys. Apart from the main competition there are constant ‘cyphers’ going on, which is circles of people sessioning in any open area they can find. Usually they go on for about 4 to 5 hours, so that is around 4 – 5 hours of constant non-stop b-boying by a couple hundred breakers.

I soon became addicted to the dance… because of the music, because of the competiveness, because of the challenge and because of the individuality it encouraged.. Because to be a winner at a b-boy jam, the b-boy must have creativity, dance on beat, and never mess up –while out- doing the next b-boy…

And being a filmmaker.. I had to combine the two passions together…

Joey Kan received a BFA in Film / Animation / Video from the Rhode Island School of Design, Providence Rhode Island. Before RISD he was involved in several community art programs in Hong Kong which involved mainly mural painting and assistant art teaching. After working for some time at a video game development company in Boston, he moved back to Hong Kong to complete his documentary. He likes to bboy session at least twice a week.

Joey Kan
Flat 17/A
45 Repulse Bay Rd,
Hong Kong, China

Digital stills available upon request.