Meet Cailin Manning | Dance Filmmaker & Creative Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cailin Manning and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cailin, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Taking a risk entails the unknown, and the unknown is scary. But fear of the unknown keeps us on our toes and asks us to stay vigilant in curating an artistic practice that continues to evolve with an ever-changing world. I think the pandemic really forced artists to assess where they were in their practice, and, for me, I needed a change. I decided to apply for a masters program in screendance at London Contemporary Dance School. The uprooting, re-planting & shaking up of moving to another country without knowing anyone was quite scary, but without that risk I would not be cultivating and curating a new community of collaborators and artists to work with. I find continuing to build your global community of working artists to be extremely beneficial in longevity of the making practice and am glad I took the leap.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
By focusing on the space where dance and film meet, I could dive deeper into a theoretical and historical world of screendance and apply that to the breadth of my making practice and directing practice. My love for dance lies in the catharsis and the way we can connect back to basic human sensation and embodiment. With AI and VR growing in trend, the corporeal nature of dance (and dance on camera) is where I want to spend my energy. My work waves between commercial, content driven creations and narrative shorts or gallery built films that speak to being human by tapping back into the body, sensation, and the choreography of the everyday. Professionally, I am still climbing up. I continue to come up against the challenges of finding creative jobs within the work force, but am excited to continue to expand my portfolio with the new knowledge I’ve gained from recently completing my Masters.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Nashville has much to offer outside of Broadway and the Honky Tonks. I love to scan through the vintage stores of East Nashville like Old Made Good and Starstruck, grab a YA Latte from Caliber Coffee in Donelson and possibly a bite at Phat Bites. We would venture to the Bowery Vault for an intimate music session, or Urban Cowboy for pizza and more live music, or pop down to Bastion, Never Never or Old Glory in Edgehill for a drink. I also enjoy going to the Symphony or attending an outdoor event at Ascend Amphitheater

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Nashville has much to offer outside of Broadway and the Honky Tonks. I love to scan through the vintage stores of East Nashville like Old Made Good and Starstruck, grab a YA Latte from Caliber Coffee in Donelson and possibly a bite at Phat Bites. We would venture to the Bowery Vault for an intimate music session, or Urban Cowboy for pizza and more live music, or pop down to Bastion, Never Never or Old Glory in Edgehill for a drink. I also enjoy going to the Symphony or attending an outdoor event at Ascend Amphitheater

Website: www.cailinleigh.com

Instagram: @cailinleighmanning

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cailin-manning-2a7298b5/

Other: My vimeo can be accessed through my website.

Image Credits
My headshot was taken by Minnie Morklithavong, BTS footage of filming taken by Cami Serrano & Kelly Etheridge, & other photos taken by myself