#choreograper

[apomaro-mellow]

Honestly, props to Jet's fight scenes bc that doesn't look like an easy weapon to choreograp

[mirageofadesert]

In depth Analysis and Interpretation of SET ME FREE by Jimin

Even through “Set Me Free pt.2” is a pre-release, it’s the last song on the track list of Jimin’s first album FACE. While it at set’s the mood for the album, it also is the conclusion of its story. In this post, I will give an in-depth analysis and my interpretation of the song, taking a close look at the lyrical, musically and visual storytelling. If I had summarize Jimin’s approach to music I would call it Sensitive, sinister, storytelling.

This post is inspired by this brilliant reddit post. Following Adorkables approach, in order to analyze Jimin as a storyteller, we must also ask what components make a good story? I’m going to base this post around 5 suggested essential criteria:

The Characters

The Setting

The Plot

The Conflict

The Resolution

I will also add additional thoughts on the lyrics and the symbolism.

--- --- --- --- --- --- ---

1. The Characters

The Dancers

The dancers surround Jimin throughout the video. All dressed in shades of dark grey, their movement is chaotic and nightmarish at times. They are introduced in the first sequence shielding their eyes convulsing like in pain. Their movement is full of tensions, their bodies bowed. At times, the choreography creates a feeling of being caged in, while they remind me of crawling demons or shadows. As the story progresses, their movement becomes more open. They symbolize the shadow Jimin is facing within.

Jimin in-between changing narrators

Jimin is the vocal point of this video, but he re-presents different parts of his self. The first verse indicates this quite directly by applying quotation marks:

I got a good time Yeah time to get mine 헤맸어, 미로 (Wandering, maze) Hennessy and night “I never stop, I never stop” 다시 repeat (repeat again) “I never stop, f*** all your opps” Finally free

This is a dialogue in which Jimin converses with another part of himself. The other, darker self is musically indicated by the use of vocal procession. While in the beginning of the song, the narrator changed with each line, the darker Self takes completely over by the second verse. There is also a 3rd version of Jimin, being reborn at the end of the MV. These 3 part's of himself are also depicted in the teaser picture of 2 separated but overlapping circles.

The change of narrator is also expressed through out different movements, dance styles as well as styling for each character.

2. The Setting

As confirmed in the Behind Video, the set is referencing the Panopticon. Constructed as a circular building, with the cells along the outer wall, but with viewing windows only to the inside onto the circular courtyard, in the center of which is a watchtower, it was intended to enable perfect surveillance of the prisoners with the least possible personnel.

A consequential further development of this principle leads to further surveillance rooms in concentric circles, so that the supervisors themselves are in turn supervised, and thus carry out the task assigned to them in the most disciplined way possible. At the end of these considerations there is a network of supervised supervisors, whose subjective freedom is always already partly predetermined or restricted by the internalized power by means of panoptism.

It's used as a metaphor for Jimin's life as an idol, in which he constantly watched. But it's also more than just that, it alludes to the awareness and feeling of being (potentially) under constant supervision, having to watch one's every step and being under the control of others.

3. The Plot

"Set Me Free Pt.2 was created when I was feeling lost and depressed. I was determined to overcome those feelings and this songs conveys those emotions", Jimin told in an recently released interview. The press-release announced the song as following: “Jimin in “Set Me Free Pt.2,” which will be pre-released on March 17, sings about his resolution to free himself from various emotions hidden deep inside him."

Expressed in choreography, music, lyrics and visuals, Jimin faces part's of himself, ultimately setting himself free. He is facing a darker part of himself, fighting for freedom, but ultimately only achieving it by embracing the darkness - "Going insane to stay sane".

Let's take a closer look at the first half of the song:

I got a good time Yeah time to get mine 헤맸어, 미로 (Wandering, maze) Hennessy and night “I never stop, I never stop” 다시 repeat (repeat again) “I never stop, f*** all your opps” Finally free

The song starts out in Jimin's lower register, close to his speaking voice. There is some Korean-English wordplay in this verse. The Korean word for "maze" sounds similar to the word "mirror", while the line "Hennessy and night" is likely a play on the Korean term '헤맸어' (haemaesseo) which is a state of wandering around, being aimless or lost. It’s also to be understand in the context of Honsul, which refers to drinking alone at home, which is a divergent from Koreas social drinking culture, mostly practiced by younger people. Suga has dedicated a whole song to this.

As stated above, the verse alternatives between two narrators. The 2nd and darker one is getting more and more aggressive. This is mirrored by Jimin's dancing. From the tip of his toes to his fingers, Jimin expresses these emotions. Dance analysis account JiminUncut pointed out: "With shoulders up and head down, this pose is the opposite of ballet, which always looks for shoulders down and neck elongated. This posture looks simultaneously defensive and aggressive. The head is hunched, but the arms and chest are spread open as if daring someone to attack."

It's followed by Jimin cursing at his "opps", meaning his opponents and haters. Everyone following Jimin closely the last couple of years, is aware of the constant attacks and death treads against him and his family, that he had to suffer.

Ah yeah, ah yeah 끝에 멈춰 선 나 (I stand here, at the end) Not yet, not yet 돌아보지 않아 (I’m not looking back) Now yeah, now yeah 날아가 butterfly (Fly butterfly) Finally free

While singing this is his dancing to the center of a spiral, before breaking free doing a Jamaican Reggie dance from the 90s called the Butterfly. This spiral could be understand at him closing in on his core, or being sucked into despair. The form also looks like a Fibonacci spiral, which depicts the golden ratio of perfection in nature.

Look at me now 더 이상 아파도 숨지 않아 (I will not hide even if I am hurt) 미치지 않기 위해 미치려는 것 (Going crazy so I don’t go crazy) 지나간 나를 위해 손을 들어 (Put your hands up for the past me) Now set me free Set me free x 8

Jimin is about the free himself. He is looking forward, ready for change and freedom, which is expressed by the butterfly metaphor. The choreography now encompasses broader and more open movements, while still being full of tension. While he is not looking back, he is also embracing his past self and the pain that comes with it. The line "going insane to stay sane" is referencing BTS "On", which was a turning point in Map of the Soul 7, indicating the will to fight one's own shadow and finding one's true self. The lines works similar here.

The repetition of the "Set Me Free" expresses feeling of being stuck like in a Hamster wheel, as Jimin explained in the Behind Video. He is not free just yet ... first he has to fully embrace the darkness.

4. The conflict

There are two points of conflict: One between parts of Jimin self, another expressed in his interaction with the dancers. The dancers do embody both the shadow within, as well as external struggles, such as haters ("ops") as well as the public.

After Jimins first attempt of breaking free, the dancers pull him back into the middle of the circular prison. This is when he unleashes the darkness, embraces the insanity and fully transforms into the second narrator!

The first and second verse mirror each other, however starting from the second verse, the second darker narrator has broken free.

I got feel low Still 난 미로 (Still in the maze) But I got no time to break soul Just let me flow Hey fool, just get out of my way Shut up, f*** off I’m on my way

Jimin is no longer having a "good time", he is still stuck, but read to fight. His anger and inner darkness is expressed with this rap-verse, the shouting and sonically translated via the vocal processing distorting Jimin's voice to an inhuman level.

The choreo of both verses also mirror each other. In the first version, the four dancers circle Jimin pointing threatening at him. Interesting is, that neither the dancers nor Jimin are fully standing up, but are rather still hunched over. When Jimin is moving his head, he is covering his eyes, still night facing what is above.

The second time, the four dancers are now propped up by other, have becoming bigger, better supported and are standing up. The lighting is also significantly darker, making the scene even more threatening. However, Jimin doesn't care. He is is standing straight, even looking at every single one of them defiantly.

Look at me now 날 비웃어도 멈추지 않아 (You can mock me but I won’t stop) 미치지 않기 위해 미치려는 것 (Going crazy so I don’t go crazy) 지나간 나를 위해 손을 들어 (Put your hands up for the past me) Now set me free Set me free (x 12)

During the last part of the songs, the formation change. Jimin is no longer in-front of the other dancers, they are standing in circles around him, moving towards him. Their movements are big now, no longer restrain, no longer crawling but looking above, no longer scared.

5. The resolution

In the final scene, the darkness is again closing on him, crawling, reaching, tearing. This is the finale embrace. They lift him up towards the light above, Jimin is reaching out ... only to end up swallowed by the shadows. Instead of escaping the darkness by flying away, he faced it... this is the moment of rebirth.

The third and final version of Jimin is facing the camera, mirroring the beginning of the music video. He is dressed in white and soft clothing, contrasting the darkness from before. Jimin's true self is free.

6. Symbolism

I want to address some re-occurring symbolism in this segment. The whole release - from the first announcement to every video is filled with multi-layered symbolism and deep meaning.

Butterfly

Butterflies go through a life circle that's determined by a drastic transformation: Hatching from an egg, they grow into a caterpillar, which eventually form a cocoon and then emerges as a butterfly. This transformation is expressed in the choreography of the song. The finale scene of the dancers grasping for Jimin, completely engulfing him like in a cocoon, is the finale step towards his full transformation, which sets him free. Freedom is here symbolized by the ability to fly, which liberates from the orders and rules of human society.

Circles

The symbol of the circle is at the center of the concept of FACE. It's in the album cover, it was part of the album announcement, it's depicted on both song posters, but without the album being out, I can't say for sure, what it's full meaning is, so I will focus on how it's used in Set Me Free. It's present in the Panopticon inspired stage, , in this choreography and on Jimins chest in form of German poem. The last one is called "Ich lebe mein Leben" by Rainer Maria Rilke, 1899:

I live my life in ever-widening circles that stretch themselves out over all the things. I won't, perhaps, complete the last one, but I intend on trying.

I circle around God, around the ancient tower, and I circle for thousands of years; and I don't know, yet: am I a falcon, a storm, or a mighty song.

As a native German speaker, I want to point out that the German word for "circle" is "ring" is not the literal translation. Instead it's similar to the English term "ring". But it could also be a world play with "zu ringen" which would mean "to struggle", while also evoking the feeling of going into circles. The poem also tells a story of feeling stuck, but trying to reach a goal not knowing who you are.

The three circle from the song trailer represent the tree version of Jimin, that exist in the song: The Jimin on a journey of self-discovery, the Darkness within and the liberated true self. While all being separate entity, they all are connected. The circle's are more reminiscence of the water stains made by a glass, rather than the waves we have seen for Like Crazy and FACE in general. This array reminds me a lot of Carl G. Jung's concept of the soul, in which the true self overlaps with both the Persona (what we show to the world) and the Shadow (the darkness within).

7. Conclusion

"Set Me Free pt.2" tells the story of Jimin facing his Shadow within, embracing it and thereby finding his true self. This story is told masterfully through different elements form music, lyrics to choreography, visuals and 19 century German poetry. The depth of this song, the layers of meaning and way it can evokes emotions, make it a masterpiece in my opinion.

This being the last song on FACE, also makes it the final conclusion of the story told in Jimin's first album. It's a hopeful ending.

Spoiler x Spoiler x Spoiler (I'm serious!!)

I have already been able to listen to the whole album ... and all I can say is how grateful I am that "Set Me Free pt. 2" is not only a pre-release, but also the last song of the album. Otherwise this album would have emotionally broken me.

[jessiangravelblr]

DJ Snake - Taki Taki ft. Selena Gomez, Cardi B, Ozuna - Dance Choreograp...

[liberty01sosodanse]

Seventeen danse novice élue PCC2024 #countrydance #linedance #choreograp...

[cyberbenb]

Dmytro Dikusar: I will not be able to hit the dance floor until the end of the war, until we win

The famous Ukrainain dancer Dmytro Dikusar changed his priorities when the full scale russian invasion began. We all remember him from the “Dancing with the Stars” show. Professional dancer-choreograp Source : ukrainefrontlines.com/discover-…

[sdeet]

好きなダンス動画を貼るだけの投稿

気持ちがあれだなーーというときに延々見る用。

Julien Guérin "Elles" 好き。Academie Princesse Graceのために作られた作品のようだ。 バレエの円盤みたいになってるタイプのチュチュの形が極限までただの要素になるとこうか、っていう感じのシルエットが好き。

APGのチャンネルで2016年のガラの動画もある。上記の続きのように見えるけどこちらは chorégraphie Jeroen Verbruggen　とあるので違う作品を続けてやってる感じなのかな。

振付家のサイトメモ

David Orlowsky & David Bergmüller – Eileen (Official Music Video)

David Orlowsky & David Bergmülle　のミュージックビデオ。クラリネットとリュートの人。 spotifyでヘンリー・パーセルを流していたら奏者つながりで流れてきた曲。意図せず音楽を先に聞いて、すごくいいなと思って画面を見たらダンスのショート動画だったのでyoutubeで本体を探して観た。すごくよい。好き。美しい作品。久しぶりにダンスを見てしびれるというのを体験した。飛んだり跳ねたりポーズをキメるだけがダンスではないのだ。

タイトルにもなっている、ダンサーのEileen Kramer��んは1914年生まれのオーストラリアのダンサーだそう。

音楽もめちゃいいのでこれはアルバム買うか。

最近知ったデンマークのダンスカンパニー　

Kammerballetten

どの作品もおもしろそう。

これはインスタで流れてきたやつ。かっこいい。

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by TURFinc (@turfinc)

ところで、『長靴下のピッピ』がスウェーデンでミュージカル＆サーカスショー化されていて、これめっちゃ観たいんですよね。音楽はABBAのメンバーが手掛けているという。

この公演のサーカス部分を担っているのがCIRKUSCIRKÖRで、彼らは日本にも何度か公演に来ています。

ピッピのはでかいプロダクションだからツアーは難しそうだよなあ。いいなあ。

[my82ic]

딸팍에 나가서 살았는데 자식들이 보고 싶지 않아.

딸팍이들 – 아..진짜 저거 좀 봐봐. 딸팍 바로가기: 딸팍에 대해 더 알아보기 진심 너네들이 미?? 진짜 얘네가 제일 잘생겼고 최고인듯!! (물론 남자얘들도ᄏᄏ) [펌] Rainforest_Where did you get this? What is the movie? Why are we left alone home to see a party next time in my life?” Pusan, Suwon and Daejin-dong which was both combine with citizens of Bugsa Hills. The concept that “playing” films provide regional views, onl y choreograpes, storytelling, plot…

[jakiesexyfinedude]

DJ Snake - Taki Taki ft. Selena Gomez, Cardi B, Ozuna - Dance Choreograp...

[jamel-omar]

#throwback thursdays, and again a Moment of the Time, where i was on #Tour ☺️ here you see My #fellow #dancers and #dralban and me #jamelomar 😌 #1994 in The beginning of My #career 😌 i feel #blessed today, that i learned so much from so many #talents and Friends till now 😇 #profession #agency #choreograper #stage #instagood #like #likes #follow #lebanese #romanian #bestoftheday #picoftheday #photooftheday #artist #tbt (hier: Schwerin Castle East Germany) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cgj03n-MeSv/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[pinovela]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Pino Vela (@pinoovela)

LA TENACIA👈🧐 Grilli, ci vediamo Domenica. Connessi x guardare il mio VIDEO. AMNIOTIC 👈🧐 Grilli è stato un grande lavoro, ma quello che conta è essere riuscito a portare a termine un primo prodotto. Il primo di un progetto completamente nuovo. Grilli a DOMENICA. 📍 #siemprepositivi #choreograper #amniotic #amniotico #danzareinapnea #PinoVela #VelaPino #fantastico #positivo #bellissimo #videoklip #edit #ebiktravelcosenza #DaniloGrano #director #filmdirector #tenacia https://www.instagram.com/p/CdyBmo8qvgr/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[flyingpurplepeopleeater42]

broke:its good that most eurovision songs are in english now bc everyone can understand them

woke:every country should sing in their own language in order to have a more culturally diverse competition

bespoke: the thing that creates the many-eurovision-sound-the-same problem is not that the songs are in english per se but the fact that the same 5 songwriters, choreographers etc are the ones composing a good number of entries every year just because they created a winning song once.

[jessiangravelblr]

DJ Snake - Taki Taki ft. Selena Gomez, Cardi B, Ozuna - Dance Choreograp...

[tisaqueen]

How many choreos did Scott do?!

[wallisjewellie]

I just would like to take a moment to comment on the below test footage in which - as part of the pre-visualization of the force choke/let her go scene in RotS - choreography is being fine tuned with Hayden and two stunt doubles.

(The video was originally uploaded to the Saberproject YouTube channel, and they had gotten hold of it in 2016, directly from Nick Gillard, the stunt coordinator and creator of lightsaber duels seen in the prequels movies. According to Saberproject, the video was shot to give Lucas an idea of how the final battle might play out.)

The actual scene in the movie does play out differently. In the finished film Padmé stays on the ground, Anakin is staring only at her the whole time, then when he releases her from the chokehold, Padmé simply collapses. What we see in the BTS footage is different.

Here, when Obi-Wan calls on Anakin to let her go, Anakin turns around, fixes his gaze at Obi-Wan, and with a cruel, twisted, cold and determined expression on his face (while still looking at Obi-Wan), he lifts Padmé up in the air, then releasing her, lets her fall back onto the ground from a rather unsettling height. Then without a split moment to spare on her, Anakin turns his whole body towards Obi-Wan, ready for the confrontation. When the camera cuts to the Obi-Wan stunt double, we can see him with his lightsaber already drawn, switching his attention from Padmé on the ground to Anakin, who started to walk towards him in the meantime.

Since it is an aided rehearsal, we can observe only Hayden’s acting. There is a lot in Anakin’s eyes, but my impression is the following. At this point he is already beyond reason, blinded by rage and the sense of betrayal. It seems that in this version, he is not punishing Padmé for siding with Obi-Wan, but rather, trying to punish/provocate Obi-Wan by deliberately hurting Padmé. There is an element of defiance, some pettiness, and a cold-hearted, calculated attempt to make both of them suffer. The chocking probably starts as retaliation against Padmé, then in a glimpse of time, she gets reduced to a tool against Obi-Wan, and it shows how far Vader drifted from Annie.

RotS gives us the impression that Anakin - almost by default, instinctively - obeys Obi-Wan by letting her go, and almost immediately (for a moment) there is confused regret on his face. In the rehearsal bit, it is the opposite. In fact, he obeys, but in the meantime, he also does the most damage he can, and the entire action is performative and cruel. And on his face, there is anything but confusion or regret. This is Vader through and through. A Vader, who very likely believes that the other two’s betrayal stretches beyond conspiring to kill him.

Mind that RotS was created and shot with the idea that Anakin suspects/fears, then as a result of Palpatine’s cunning manipulation, believes that his ex master and his wife have been having an affair. (See some of my previous posts for more details.) Chocking the woman who loves him and is pregnant with his child and dropping her from about 10 ft is unthinkable and too brutal, you say? Well, I am almost certain that in that scene Anakin believes that the child is not even his, that Padmé is indeed lying to him about her love, and that she has indeed brought Obi-Wan with her to kill him. In his rampant rage he is unable and unwilling to think rationally, and he does not give a damn about the baby - potentially Obi-Wan’s child. (I still think that with the deletion of the Obi-Wan/Padmé/Rebel Alliance background storyline, there are (not so) subtle plot holes, and the ‘why would Anakin try to physically (and possibly fatally) assault his pregnant wife’, is one of them. Especially, because his main driver throughout the movie has been to save her from death.)

But back to the BTS footage. What we see in it is hardly experimental, because pre-visualization (as shown in one AotC webisode) is a multiple-step process with a well thought-out sequence of motions and choreography, so that the visual effects team could build the world around them as precisely as possible. It already has a rather strict choreography, and serves the purpose of seeing what the scene will look like on screen, in order to make some final tweaks before shooting it.

As far as I know, this particular one was not among the reshot scenes, so the above seen choreography was either changed before the cameras started rolling, or multiple versions were filmed, and the milder one was kept. (Then Lucas cushioned it further with cutting out entire lines from the dialogues Anakin has here with Padmé on Obi-Wan, then with Obi-Wan on Padmé, causing strange glitches if one looks a bit closer, but I might make another post about it later.)

Since RotS already has some brutal elements if you think about it (massacre of children; burning the skin and flesh off of Vader; painful childbirth scene ending in death; master cutting off the limbs of one-time apprentice and leaving him to die amid unthinkable suffering), it could be that Lucas eventually shied away from other heavy themes (adultery and ambiguous paternity; performative physical abuse of an expectant mother; wife attempting to knife her husband). The irony is that all the above mentioned themes would have come to a crescendo in this ‘let her go’, and the subsequent confrontation scene.

But there is more to this scene. When I wrote in the previous paragraph that ‘wife attempting to knife her husband’, I was not (only) referring to backstabbing. Padmé was supposed to arrive on Mustafar with Obi-Wan hidden on her ship, and a knife hidden in her sleeve. They originally were there to kill Vader. When Padmé failed (unable to bring herself to kill the father of her child.), Obi-Wan stepped in. The evidence behind this is there. The “Star Wars Storyboards: The Prequel Trilogy” book, a collection of official concept artworks, edited by J.W. Rinzler and Iain McCaig, and published in 2013, is one of them. See two examples below.

Also, at a speaking event at the Academy of Art University in late 2016, concept artist Iain McCaig confirmed that Padmé was well aware of Anakin slowly becoming a monster, and was secretly building the rebellion behind his back to overthrow her deranged husband. And so she showed up on Mustafar with a knife, fully intent on killing him, but she could not bring herself to do it. Then, at that point, Obi-Wan was meant to appear, causing Anakin to violently turn on Padmé. Much more violently than what we see in RotS.

Whatever reasons were invoked when deciding against certain choreography choices, I still think that it is interesting to see that the idea at one point was to get Anakin trying to hurt Obi-Wan by hurting Padmé.

And although Lucas changed quite a number of things along the way, even when breaking down the final Vader v. Obi-Wan duel we see in the movie, Nick Gillard reasoned in 2019 (here at 01:06 - 01:11) that the choreography had been put together with the following in mind:

‘Anakin thinks Obi is maybe having an affair with Padmé at that point.’

[ataleofcrowns]

Idk if I hallucinated it but I remember you told us how well our lovely ROs danced. I cannot find the ask tho, so I'll ask: how well DO our ROs dance, choreographed vs freestyling it?

X is probably the best dancer, both choreograped as well as freestyling; memorizing movements is easy for them, and they’re creative on their feet so freestyling isn’t a problem either.

R does not enjoy spontaneous dancing so they wouldn’t be freestyling much, but they’re good with choreographed dances.

A is good with freestyling, but dislikes choreographed dancing, it feels far too restrictive to them.

D does not like dancing at all; due to their size they always feel a little awkward about it.