In the liminal space between dusk and dawn, where shadows stretch long and moonlight casts its silver spell, NON — the contemporary dance company heralding "the new, the old, and the now" — invites us into the dreamscape of their first cinematic opus, The Innocence of a Dream. Premiering 18 December 2025, this hypnotic film, directed by founder and artistic director Davide Di Giovanni, bends the boundary between corporeal movement and mythological reverie.
With threads pulled from the fabric of faun mythology and the echoes of Nijinsky’s L’Après-midi d’un Faune, the film conjures an enchanted night’s journey. Under a velvet sky pierced by soft, pearly light, three mystical figures – a nymph and two fauns – move through a tableau of love, liberty, and self-awakening. But this is no mere retelling. "As a choreographer, I always see movement in what appears before my eyes," NON founder and artistic director Davide Di Giovanni tells RUSSH. "One day, while sitting on a rock and looking out at the ocean in late May, the music of Debussy's Prelude a l’aprés midí d’un Faun came to my ears; I knew then that I had to explore the feeling of merging dance with nature, reconnecting with the past and the iconic Nijinsky choreography, and the idea for the film began to take shape in my mind."
"A month later, everything was clear, and I shared the concept with Chloe [Leong] and the other dancers. Together, we brought the movements to life and the rest came together very naturally."
NON’s transition from stage to screen feels less like a departure and more like an evolution. “NON was born from the need to create a new space for the dance scene, blending fresh ideas with classical roots and reflecting on the current state of dance," says Di Giovanni. "We believe in the importance of bringing communities together through new forms of performance and reinventing the concept of the stage by using diverse environments.”
Central to this alchemy are the dancers – Chloe Leong, Conal Francis-Martin, and Louis Steinmetz – whose bodies become conduits for the film’s emotional currents. “In the studio, we conjured movements together, drawing inspiration from anything that sparked us — a picture, a painting, a costume, a pose,” says Di Giovanni in the film's notes. "From there, the movement evolved naturally, becoming something uniquely their own.” This spirit of collaboration permeates every frame, as does the ethereal cinematography of DOP Sean Slattery and the tactile costuming of Bridie Gilbert and Michele McQuillan. Each seam, shadow, and soft-focus shot feeds into the dream’s lush, lived-in texture.
NON’s commitment to independence is as much a creative stance as it is a structural one. “Being an independent entity gives us the freedom to create from the ground up, shaping our vision without limitations,” Di Giovanni explains. This autonomy allows NON to nurture their ideas like seedlings. “We understand that, like a plant, this process takes time and care, but with perseverance, we know the fruits of our labour will eventually blossom.”
As NON looks toward the future, they envision a creative constellation that extends beyond film. "We want to bring more dance into people's lives through live performance, films, and beyond, while also connecting with the next generation of dancers," says Di Giovanni.
Watch the trailer for NON's The Innocence of a Dream on the RUSSH Facebook page.
