Vita Activa (film)

Daniel Linehan & Michael Helland & Marieke Dermul

Vrouw ligt op haar rug op een matras op de grond, in een lichte ruimte met planten, en vertelt iets aan een andere vrouw die naast haar op de grond zit. Woman lies on her back on a mattress on the floor, in a light room with plants, and tells something to another woman sitting next to her on the floor.
Daniel Linehan, Michael Helland, Marieke Dermul. Vita Activa (videostill). Courtesy of the artist

10 people, 3 generations, multiple languages, different backgrounds.
10 portraits, 10 stories about sharing space, valuing talent, giving and receiving. About taking time and spending it in meaningful ways.

The film Vita Activa tells the story of ten people from diverse backgrounds and different generations who worked together for a week at STUK in a workshop of dance company Hiatus around the theme of time and work. They shared their evolving perspectives on their talents and how they can spend time meaningfully together. At the heart of the workshop, deep connections emerged through valuable and surprising one-hour exchanges.

2025, single-channel, color, sound, 29’59”, in loop
Directed by Marieke Dermul
Filmed by Alexis Pistorius & Marieke Dermul
Edited by Alexis Pistorius
Sound post production Paul Verhalen
Subtitles Jens Dewulf
With Ann Bries, Mercedes Ferrari, Juliette Hansart, Sophie Jardin, Eden Loyens, Fabio Pontecchiani, Giulia Tornarolli, Tine Vandromme, Gerda Vannijvel, Kim Van Wellendael, Stéphanie Verrin, Anneleen Keppens, Daniel Linehan & Michael Helland
Concept Vita Activa Daniel Linehan & Michael Helland
Artistic assistant Anneleen Keppens
Production Hiatus
Coproduction STUK & De Zendelingen
With the support of Creative Europe of the European Union in the frame of DANCE ON – PASS ON – DREAM ON, la Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles & la Loterie Nationale
Twee mannen in t-shirts met bloemenpatroon staan naast elkaar op een trap, naar elkaar gericht, hun armen leunend op de leuning, en kijken omhoog recht in de lens. Two men wearing t-shirts in flower pattern stand next to each other, facing each other, on a flight of stairs, arms resting on the railing, looking up and straight into the lens.

Daniel Linehan
°1982, Olympia (Washington), USA

Daniel Linehan’s choreographic work is intent on softly obscuring the line that separates dance from everything else. He approaches performance-making from the point of view of a curious amateur, testing various interactions between dance and non-dance forms, searching for unlikely conjunctions, juxtapositions, and parallels between texts, movements, images, songs, videos, and rhythms. Linehan first studied dance in Seattle and then moved to New York in 2004. In 2008, he moved to Brussels where he completed the Research Cycle at P.A.R.T.S., and founded the dance company Hiatus.

Michael Helland

°1981, Seattle (Washington), USA

Michael Helland works at the crossroads of theatrical presentation, exhibition-based contexts, and public art modalities. He makes creative interventions aimed to foster social connectivity and help communities face the dark uncertainty of the future. Since completing the Yoga Conscious Living & Spiritual Activism program and receiving his certificate in Ayurvedic Yoga Massage, he offers intuitive bodywork rituals and public classes on a regular basis. Helland holds degrees in Dance and in Community, Environment, and Planning from the University of Washington in Seattle, where he was an Integrated Graduate Education Research Training Fellow in Urban Ecology.

Marieke Dermul
°1988, Bruges, Belgium

Marieke Dermul is a Belgian documentary filmmaker and director. She has produced various TV formats and documentaries (Pride is Protest!, No Filter, …) for Eén and Canvas. In her audiovisual work, she approaches some of the most sensitive themes in a profound and layered way. By working in an intimate setting, she puts her protagonists at ease, allowing their stories to finally take up the space they deserve.

Photo: Michael Helland & Daniel Linehan © Hans Ruebens