While earning my MFA in Dance at the University of Illinois, I discovered my true passion: Dance for the Camera. It let me merge my eye for photographic composition with a deeper, more visceral connection to the audience. I was captivated by the way a close-up could reveal subtleties lost on stage, how a jump cut could become its own kind of movement, and how the camera itself could become a dance partner. The process felt like choreographing not just bodies—but the lens. That spark never left me. Today, this remains my number one creative obsession.
Winter Studies
Concept, Movement, Camera, and Editing by Nadia Oussenko
Music Composition by Scott Rubin
●Flatlands Dance Film Festival, University of Illinois@Urbana-Champaign: 2024
●Elevate Chicago Dance, Chicago Cultural Center: 2022
"Winter Studies" explores the layered experience of isolation during Chicago’s post-pandemic winters. Set in a vacant apartment overlooking Lake Michigan, the piece weaves together movement, music, and minimal lighting to evoke an eerie, suspended atmosphere — one charged with tension and aching for release. At its core is a physical language that shifts between the the quiet and the violently abrupt, mirroring the emotional turbulence of solitude. Through this interplay of subtlety and spasm, "Winter Studies" reflects on seasonal heaviness and the quiet resilience that flickers in the dark.
On Following Chapter 1: The Tango
Directed and Edited by Nadia Oussenko
Director of Photography Daniel Kullman
Danced by Nadia Oussenko and Nicole Gifford
Music by Carlos Gardel sung by Sarah Ponder
● Elevate Chicago Dance, Chicago Cultural Center: 2018
● High Concept Lab Open House, Hairpin Arts Center: Chicago 2017
“On Following” is a personal, documentary-style exploration of partner dance, vulnerability, and the intricate art of giving up control. Chapter 1 focuses on the tango — a dance built on tension, listening, and trust. Through the lens of my own experience learning to follow, this film invites viewers into the emotional terrain of surrendering to another’s lead, the discomfort and beauty of softening one’s instincts to take charge, and the quiet power in choosing to respond rather than initiate.
Walking Grounds
Directed and Edited by Nadia Oussenko
Cinematography by Devon Catucci and Nadia Oussenko
Movement by Monica Cristiano
Produced by Experimental Film Virginia
● Topanga Film Festival: Los Angeles 2013
●ADF Dancing for the Camera-International Festival of Film and Video Dance: Durham, NC 2013
● Harbor for the Arts Festival: Cape Charles, VA 2013
"Walking Grounds" is a short dance film following a woman’s return to Virginia’s Eastern Shoreline as she processes the end of a relationship. Movement becomes a way of navigating memory — gestures reflect the tension of holding on and the quiet effort of letting go. Set against the vast stillness of the coast, the film is textured with the sounds of nature: boots crunching on gravel, distant seagulls, and the steady rhythm of water.
Dance of the Queer Tide Faeries
Directed and Edited by Nadia Oussenko
Cinematography by Daniel Kullman
Performance, Painting, and Movement by Rachel Damon, Christopher Knowlton, and Nadia Oussenko
Music by Bob Garret
● Chicago International Movies and Music Festival, The Hideout: Chicago 2013
● Topanga Film Festival: Los Angeles 2012
● Dances Made to Order (online at dancesmadetoorder.com), May Chicago Edition: 2012
"Dance of the Queer Tide Faeries" is a vibrant short dance film featuring three colorful sprites. Set on the shoreline of Lake Michigan, the trio paints a massive canvas of the water in front of them. As the paint dries, so do tensions and personalities surface through gesture and interaction. The piece culminates in a spirited dance in front of their collaborative work, fusing movement, color, and character into a playful composition. Inspired by audience-submitted themes — clocks and paint, desire/repulsion, and the struggle against biology— the film is a whimsical yet grounded celebration of queer creativity and collective expression.
Nothing to See/Hear
Directed and Edited by Nadia Oussenko
Cinematography by Daniel Kullman
Danced by Rachel Damon, Julia Rae Antonick
Music by the books
● Dance on Camera Festival: New York, 2013
● Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival: 2012
● Screen Dances: Films by Nadia Oussenko: Chicago Filmmakers, 2011
● Breakout!: Museum of Contemporary Art, 2012
"Nothing to See/Hear" is a poignant love story about two women experiencing the complexities of their unraveling relationship. As the estranged couple poses for a portrait in a studio, each woman reflects on the intimacy they once shared.
On Falling. . . (excerpt)
Danced, Directed, and Edited by Nadia Oussenko
Cinematography by Daniel Kullman
Music by Ian Hatcher, John Tweedie, the Books
● Video Corpo, SITE/less: Chicago 2018
● Dance Films Kino, Hyde Park Arts Center: Chicago 2012
● Screen Dances: Films by Nadia Oussenko, Chicago Filmmakers, 2011
●Winner of 2010 Gold Hermes Creative Award
●ADF Dancing for the Camera-International Festival of Film and Video Dance: Durham, NC 2010
●Dance Films by Jan Bartoszek and Nadia Oussenko-Music Box Theatre/Alliance Francaise: Chicago 2009
●Dance for the Camera 2009, Chicago Cultural Center: 2009 (excerpt)
This Dance for Camera is composed of vignettes related to the exploration of falling and surrender. Nadia Oussenko and filmmaker Daniel Kullman have experimented in a variety of both public and private spaces as well as an array of different surfaces and structures, discovering how movement, cinematography, outside stimulus, and costuming examines feelings of abandonment, anxiety, and surrender. This dance for the camera also seeks to heighten the viewer’s visceral sensation through exploring the dynamic between voyeurism and the mover’s point-of-view.
Connect 4
Choreographed, Directed and Edited by Nadia Oussenko
Cinematography by Daniel Kullman
Danced by Anna Marks, Caitlin Marz, Keisha Turner, and Elizabeth Veile
Music by Martin Dosh
● Screen Dances: Films by Nadia Oussenko, Chicago Filmmakers, 2011
●San Francisco Dance Film Festival: San Francisco 2011
●Dance & Camera Film Screening, ODC Theater: San Francisco 2010
●Moves 08 International Festival of Movement on Screen: UK 2008
●ADF Dancing for the Camera-International Festival of Film and Video Dance: Durham, NC 2007
●Port Clinton Film Festival: Highland Park, IL 2008
"Connect 4" features four dancers who collaborate within four distinct areas of a warehouse to create and connect a single movement phrase. Each dancer brings their unique expression and perspective, contributing to a cohesive performance that explores themes of connection and collaboration. The cinematography dynamically shifts to reflect the character of each space, enhancing the emotional resonance and visual storytelling, as it captures the distinct atmosphere and movement dynamics inherent to each environment.