The Great
Movement director
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s a movement director, Polly Bennett has carved out a niche recreating famous figures in productions such as Bohemian Rhapsody, Stan & Ollie and The Crown. But the remit of the role is very broad. What does the job involve? Movement directors create and build physical sequences, and help actors to find a vocabulary of physical behaviour to tell a story. All movement directors work differently but my television and film work has largely developed around embodying well-known people, such the Royal Family in The Crown or Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s upcoming biopic. Working on the physical world of these characters can extend into choreography. It’s a role that evolves with every job.
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How did you first become a movement director? As a young dancer and actor, I often led physical warm-ups and became the person who would say, “Wouldn’t it be better if we tried this?” After university, I took a job behind the scenes in television production, but ended up helping a model who was struggling to walk in time to music. I knew then that my ability to describe movement was something to pursue, so I did an MA in movement, which led to me joining the choreography team of the London 2012 Olympics ceremonies. I developed my skill set in theatre, and now here I am. How much does movement direction overlap with choreography? They’re part of the same world. While choreography is exclusively about dance and setting steps, movement
direction uses those and more tools to give a greater range of possibilities for actors. How has the job changed over time? Movement roles have been around in theatre since the beginning of the 20th century, whether they were known as musical stagers, dance répétiteurs, choreographers or movement directors. But they haven’t always been acknow ledged. The field is now growing and there’s a greater understanding of the value of movement in a TV or film process. That means there’s more opportunity to do great work. What was the first TV programme you worked on? I worked on the film Stan & Ollie first and, during Bohemian Rhapsody, I was put up for Killing Eve. I worked on a scene in the first series with Jodie
Channel 4
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