PAT23083449 (SHR6E032F~001) Viability Study

This viability study will examine my collaborative project to determine its practicality, analyse its likelihood of success, identify possible obstacles, and propose alternative strategies to manage them. For this project, I aim to create a mini documentary, working closely with dancers from London, Jaén and Bengaluru. The documentary will include short performances from each dancer and a short interview discussing their techniques, inspiration and motivation for dance. These interviews will be recorded in their native languages and translated for the documentary, and the performances will use reference music tailored to their styles.

My goal is to showcase dance from around the world, and how different cultures interpret their artform. The dancers are young, aspiring individuals who can show how the youth perceive dance and what makes them unique. Studies in intercultural dance education suggest that cross-cultural practice helps strengthen identity and understanding between communities (Liu, Xue & Wang 2024), and global dance research highlights how movement carries cultural meaning (Desmond 2010). Documentary studies also note that performance-based storytelling helps audiences connect with personal narratives (Nichols 2017). Through these interviews and performances, the project aims to show that individuals can express their identity through art, regardless of cultural or linguistic barriers.

Personnel

The personnel for this project would include:

Joshua Pattison

Project Director
Experience with composing and producing tracks for various artists
3^rd year Jazz Composition student

Deeni Golay

Aspiring dancer attending dance school in Bengaluru India.
Experienced in performance and cheerleading for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Indian premier league team).

Marta De La Paz Troya

Professional dancer currently practicing in Spain.
Attending multiple dance competition with her dance school and with the University of Leeds team during her Erasmus year.

Hannah Davidson

Dancer currently based in London, United Kingdom.
Graduated her masters in 2025 from Northern School of Contemporary Dance.

Dancers’ videographers

Will be sourced by the dancers themselves
Would record their performances and their interviews
Preferable if they have some background in videography

Editor

To be decided

Methodology

I started this project by contacting dancers from various countries that I had known previously to see whether they would be interested in this project (Appendix 1-5). Once the dancers were organised, the project would be split into three stages. A Gantt chart has also been created to show clear division of labour (Appendix 6).

First, each dancer will send me reference music so I can understand their preferred style and genre(Appendix 7-8). After composing the initial mixes, we move into the second phase, where I send the mixes to the dancers along their interview questions
During this stage, the dancers choreograph their performances and film footage of their rehearsals, performances and behind-the-scenes, as well as their interviews in their native language. While they complete their tasks, I will search for an editor. If I fail, I must edit the footage myself, which means completing any mixing before the third stage. Additionally, if the dancers have any feedback on the mixes, I will take them into consideration while continuing to work on the tracks.
In the third stage, the dancers send back their footage, and I share the footage with the editor. In the case that I have found an editor; they will compile the footage into the documentary while I finalise the mixes. If not, I must ensure that I have finished mixing the tracks during the second stage, so that I can focus on editing.

Rationale

I chose to create this documentary as my journey from India to the United Kingdom to study music has had a profound impact on how I see music and culture and has given me a unique perspective from those who grew up here or travelled from other places. Along the way, I unexpectedly connected with dancers from various backgrounds, and their stories made me wonder how their cultures, traditions, and experiences shape the way they move. This project is my way of exploring those questions, to understand how young dancers express who they are through their art, and how each culture gives dance its own unique voice.

Market Analysis

The global market for cultural documentaries has continued to expand over the past decade, driven by increased demand for diverse and authentic storytelling (Business Research Insights, 2025). Platforms such as Netflix, YouTube, Vimeo, and independent film festivals (including Tribeca, Sundance, and the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam) play a major role in the rise of short form and mini documentary content. These outlets make it possible for emerging filmmakers to reach international audiences without relying on traditional distribution channels. Additionally, audiences today are drawn to cross-cultural narratives, youth perspectives, and art-based storytelling that emphasize human connection, which aligns with the concept of this documentary. This trend reflects a broader movement in the creative industries toward showcasing identity, cultural exchange, and youth perspectives through art (Ramesh, 2023).

Dance-related documentaries are also becoming increasingly popular, as seen with Netflix’s Move(2020), which illustrates global dance culture, and the increase in online dance education further demonstrates that dance is now more global and accessible (IndustryResearch.biz, 2025).

Your Market/Target Audiences

The primary audience for this type of documentary would be young adults from the age of 18 to 35, particularly those who are engaged in dance, performing arts and digital content creators. According to Putri (2023), younger generations are increasingly using social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram to reinterpret traditional dance forms and express their identity and contemporary perspective, which reflects the cross cultural and youthful focus of this project. Educational institution, cultural organisations and art academies are another potential market audience, as they promote cultural and diverse learning. Studies on intercultural dance education emphasize the importance of youth engagement in maintaining and evolving traditional cultural practices (Liu, Xue, & Wang, 2024).

Hypothetical Budget Potential Funding

This project is consisted of young dancers who are acquaintances of mine and are all willing to contribute to the project pro bono, however I have considered the costs of the videographers and an editor, as well as any additional costs for the dancers, such as travel expenses etc.

For videographers, I have evaluated the cost based on national average day rates at amateur/semi-professional levels (Appendix 9). Therefore, the total rate is as follows:

Region	Rate per day	Total rate
Spain	£122	£244
India	£15	£30
United Kingdom	£200	£400
		£674

For the editor, the average day rate for a professional is estimated at £200 (CinematicLee, 2025), however I plan to contact film students at Leeds Beckett to edit the footage, therefore I plan to offer them £20 a day for a planned project time of 51 days for editing. The total cost would be £1020, which bring the overall budget to £1694. To cover any additional costs for the dancers, I have allotted £300 (£100 each dancer), which rounds the project off at almost £2000.

Potential streams of funding are seen in Appendix 10.

Inspiration & Influences

Most of the inspiration for the tracks come from the reference pieces provided by the dancers. They have provided me with a playlist showcasing their ideas for the dance tracks (Appendix 11). However, the playlist is extensive, so I have asked them to narrow down their references to a few tracks, making it easier for me to produce to their vision, as I feel that it would be more fitting for me to tailor the tracks to the dancer’s briefs.

As for the documentary aspect, Netflix’s Move and Only When I Dance (2009) are two projects I plan to base the documentary off (appendix 12-13). Although the production quality of these documentaries is relatively high, especially regarding videography and editing, using these projects as a template would provide direction and clarity to the vision of the documentary for the editor, the respective dancers and for myself.

Contingency Plan

While developing this project, I became aware of the risks involved, especially the challenge of coordinating with three dancers across different countries and time zones. With little certainty that everyone would be able to complete their tasks, I felt it was important to prepare alternative options. One backup plan is to narrow the documentary to a single region, focusing on its traditions and contemporary influences, which would be far easier to manage with fewer contributors. Another option is a mini documentary on a close friend, a young, highly successful lawyer in Bengaluru who founded his own firm at 29, for whom I could also create promotional music. Both alternatives still align with the core idea of producing a mini documentary or client-based promotional content, though the latter is more removed from my original concept.

I have created a likelihood-impact chart to assess risk and potential solutions (Appendix 14).

Potential for Development

I have created a SWOT chart to show the areas where the documentary can be improved and what are the potential risks involved (Appendix 15). This project also has the potential to grow further. Dance-focused festivals such as Cinedans and Dance Camera West actively support films exploring movement and culture (Cinedans, 2025), which could give the documentary wider reach. With additional cultural funding, the project could improve its production quality or allow filming on location. In the long term, it could evolve into a small docu-series supported by international arts networks.

Evaluation Viability

Based on the feedback from my presentation (Appendix 16), although none of my peers had seen a dance-specific documentary, there was clear interest in the cultural focus of the project (Appendix 17). Most comments were positive, but some raised concerns about the planned communication schedule (Appendix 18), so I intend to organise additional check-ins with the dancers. Several people also suggested that the music should include more traditional elements (Appendix 19), and while I am open to this, I want to avoid adding cultural motifs purely for effect. My aim is for the dancers to interpret the music through their dance traditions rather than relying on stereotypically traditional sounds.

Bibliography

AmbitionBox (2025) Photographer and videographer salaries by 100+ employees (updated 2025). Available at: https://www.ambitionbox.com/profile/photographer-and-videographer-salary (Accessed: 30 November 2025).

Business Research Insights (2025) Documentary Film Market Size, Share Analysis, 2033. Available at: https://www.businessresearchinsights.com/market-reports/documentary-film-market-120550 (Accessed: 9 November 2025).

Cinedans (2025) Cinedans – Dance on Screen Festival Programme. Available at: https://cinedans.nl (Accessed: 29 November 2025).

Desmond, J. (2010) Dancing Across Borders: Dancer, Dance and the Globalisation of Culture. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Freelancer Club (2025) Freelance rates for videographers and video producers 2025. Available at: https://freelancerclub.net/resources/blog/post/freelance-rates-for-videographers-and-video-producers (Accessed: 30 November 2025).

Glassdoor (2025) Salary: Videographer in Barcelona, Spain 2024. Available at: https://www.glassdoor.ca/Salaries/barcelona-videographer-salary (Accessed: 30 November 2025).

IndustryResearch.biz (2025) Online Dance Training Market Trends [2034]. Available at: https://www.industryresearch.biz/market-reports/online-dance-training-market-103054 (Accessed: 9 November 2025).

Liu, W., Xue, H. and Wang, Z.Y. (2024) ‘A systematic comparison of intercultural and indigenous cultural dance education from a global perspective (2010–2024)’, Frontiers in Psychology, 15, 1493457. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1493457

Nichols, B. (2017) Introduction to Documentary. 3rd edn. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

Putri, M.S. (2023) ‘Digital literacy and cultural expression: How TikTok reimagines traditional dance’, International Journal of Multicultural and Multireligious Understanding. Available at: https://ijmmu.com/index.php/ijmmu/article/view/7138 (Accessed: 9 November 2025).

Ramesh, S. (2023) ‘Dance and society: An exploration of cultural expression and social impact’, Journal of Humanities, Music and Dance, 3(1), pp. 17–19. https://doi.org/10.55529/jhmd.31.17.19