A life-long learner, Jen Ray @jenraydancinema works creatively through purposeful action to be an agent for positive evolution. For over a decade, these efforts have manifested in roles such as teacher, creator, & collaborator on initiatives that elevate humans & the ways we connect through dance, culture, & technology.

Dancinema started as a passion project while she was an undergrad film student at @filmubc Nearly ten years later, she is humbled & marveled at the engagement of the screendance community & the evolution of Dancinema’s function in that network.

The early years involved creating low budget experimental films, screening at festivals  (such as Los Angeles Dance Film Festival & ADF's Movies By Movers to name a few), offering Discover Dancinema @discoverdancinema workshops to all ages, features in Dance Teacher Magazine & a residency at Cucalorus.

Collabs on performances & exhibitions such as Standard Vision, The JaM Project (Dancerpalooza & The Kennedy Centre) & The Cinematheque were exciting opportunities to take Dancinema out of the conventional screen space. 

Cascadia Dance & Cinema Festival @cascadiadcfestival (est. 2015 Vancouver, BC) & Capitol Dance & Cinema Festival @capitoldcfestival (est. 2016 Washington, DC) were each the first screendance festivals in their cities, so introducing audiences & building from scratch is in Dancinema’s DNA.

Jen Ray is passionate about the educational aspects of screendance & connecting with others to interpret these dynamic works. From the curated archive of festival selections, to speaking (Danse Bloom, Utah Dance Film Festival, Idaho Screendance Festival, Shine Dance Festival, National Coalition on Sexual Exploitation) exploration & growth is at the center.

In 2020, she joined forces with Hannah Weber & Clare Schweitzer on Frameform Podcast  @frameformpod “a podcast on movies, moving & everything in between.” 

The most rewarding things in life are done in collaboration & celebration of others. Thank you to EVERYONE who has been part of this process & whose engagement has made these aspirations a reality.