Emily Schoen is a real up-and-coming star in the dance world. A dancer with Keigwin + Company, Emily was named Top 25 to Watch by Dance Magazine. She’s danced in a couple operas at the Met (with Mark Morris and Doug Varone) and even performed in the Rolling Stones 50 and Counting Tour last year. She received Gibney Dance’s bookoo grant to create and present work in Gibney Dance Center, and she was just selected as one of five emerging choreographers nationwide to create work for Met Dance in Houston, TX next summer.

She just so happens to also be Nel Shelby Productions’ awesome Project Manager for all our dance films and video editing services. We met and bonded when I was filming Nejla Y. Yatkin’s Central American tour and Emily was dancing with Nejla. It clicked that Emily could really help me with organizing my business and communicating with my growing clientele, and we’ve worked together ever since.

We just had the pleasure of filming her choreography at Gibney Dance and I thought it would be great to get her thoughts on working with us from the other side of things!

You work so intimately with NSP as Project Manager. How was it being a client yourself?
The process was awesome. From a logistical standpoint, it was easy because I got to skip a lot of steps in the planning stage. I didn’t have to gather details from the client- I could send out the complete details to the videographers right away and answer all of their questions upfront. I didn’t have to ask permission to process a credit card- I just ran my own!

From an artistic standpoint, I’ve always known that NSP does fantastic work, but by being on the other side of it, my feelings about this have strengthened. My footage is excellent, the editing is spot-on, and everyone was so pleasant throughout. In being the client, I’m reenergized to be a part of the NSP team because I’m proud of the quality of the work and the professional way in which we support the dance community.

We know you, so we know you’re meticulous and highly-organized. How much say did you have in the editing room? Were you surprised by some of the choices our editors made? How so?
I tend to go overboard on editing changes initially. I feel like I’m choreographing the dance all over again in deciding when to cut between shots. Happily, Jessica and Ashli are gracious in the editing process and they helped me through it. I’m thoroughly pleased with both my two-camera edit and the promo.

How will this video help you in future choreographic endeavors?
I’ve already used the footage to apply to festivals in the city and for out-of-state commissions. I’ve already heard back from one – and will be presenting work at WestFest this Spring.

Why would you recommend having NSP film and edit your dance?
I recommend NSP’s dance video services for the quality of the work and years of experience in dance – both filming and participating. While it’s not a requirement, everyone that works at NSP is a trained dancer – including Nel! Many of the team enjoy making dance as well. Understanding dance through and through only supports the team’s ability to capture it and edit it into excellent video.