HEADSPIN
When breaking made its controversial Olympic debut in Paris 2024, dancers saw a once-in-a-lifetime chance to prove their worth — until a viral moment thrust an unknown B-Girl into global notoriety, sparking a backlash against the sport that led both breakers and the public on a quest for answers.
About the Film
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Breaking’s inclusion at the Paris Olympics was a strategic move by the IOC, despite their decision being met with widespread ridicule from the wider public and disdain from other disciplines who believed their sport was more worthy. However, from humble beginnings on the streets of the Bronx, and fifty years of evolution, this marginalised group saw the recognition as the opportunity of a lifetime, to finally earn respect for their craft, to show the world what breaking had become.
Filmed over three years, since the beginning of the Olympic qualifiers, we witness how breakers adapt to new rules and how an art transitions into a sport. This was already an untrodden path, made all the more challenging by the fact that breakers were not at the helm of their own sport - ballroom dancers were. Deemed the only organisation organised enough to manage breakers, we go behind the scenes of the WDSF's ‘Breaking for Gold’ qualification process, where hundreds of breakers battled for one of only 16 coveted spots, in a partnership that can only be described as "oil and water".
Keen to show the world they really deserved a place at the games, breakers sought validation as athletes and the prospect of breaking becoming a professional career - everything was at stake. The lengths that some breakers went to to participate exceed imagination. Amongst the hopefuls, Dr Racheal Gunn - a Sydney local, our first interview - our guide throughout the journey. An unknown, until that fateful day when she took to the stage with a performance that broke the internet. Ridicule across the world ensued, mostly aimed at Rachael, however breaking was not immune, and the fallout broke hearts and shattered dreams. Seemingly her every move from then moving forward flamed the fires further and at the end of 2024, Rachael was possibly Australia's most hated person.
As the questions flowed, we continued to film, to witness the fallout and unpack the misinformation surrounding breaking, Raygun’s inclusion, and probably one of the worst cases of social media shaming in history. Then we returned to the community - what now for those left to pick up the pieces? What eventuated was nothing short of surprising and heartwarming. Breakers have battled their whole life, and this was just another one to overcome, to come out of - stronger. Resilience is their middle name.
The film is being distributed in Australia and New Zealand by Madman Entertainment, and rest of world by Propagate Entertainment. The film is being made in association with Rock the Bells in LA, with LL Cool J as Executive Producer.
Why watch Headspin?
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40,000 people signed a now controversial petition demanding answers from the IOC, the AOC and even Anna Meares herself, such was the outrage and confusion.
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These people, and everyone else you speak to, are still perplexed as to exactly what happened. No other crew was there to document it first hand. What has been seen to date is here-say, with interviewers not equipped to ask the questions that really matter. This is a complicated situation, and if you don't know breaking, you don't know what was being missed.
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The Raygun Phenomenon - a term that been coined since Paris, is still the most zeitgeist of all topics in current popular culture, and is still being debated amongst the masses.
What this film will provide:
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Answers. No one else has access like the access we secured during the making of this film - from the breakers themselves, right to the top - officials, the Olympic judges and more.
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Insight. For five decades, breaking has remained hidden, but as a culture it's thrived, kept true to the original pillars founded back in the Bronx. This has resulted in a sport that puts young people first, mentorship at the top of the list of priorities and holds community as it's most precious commodity. Then, there's the physical aspect of breaking, the resilience and commitment required to participate - at a time when everywhere else we're seeing the biggest crisis in youth mental health, perhaps lessons can be be drawn.
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A celebration of hip hop and breaking's part in the wider realms of hip hop culture. We celebrate the pioneers and the current leaders driving change and evolution.
