"Good Times Rollin'": An Intimate and Raw Showcase of the Harlem Hotshots

"Good Times Rollin'" is a short film featuring the Harlem Hotshots of Sweden social dancing to the song "Music Hall Beat" Illinois Jacquet. Sparsely lit and staged, it's a raw showcase of lindy hop reminiscent of "The Spirit Moves" and other older documentary work about swing dancing.

From the description:

“Good Times Rollin’ is a celebration to the joy of dancing. It’s about hanging out with your friends and having a good time. It’s about everything and nothing and whatever you want it to be.”

While it's beautifully shot and lit, I do find it frustrating to watch as a dancer. I keep wanting to see more of the details of the dancers and their movements, who keep coming in and out of the frame and the light.

At the same time, I think the director Sakarias Larsson is trying to highlight some of the abstract qualities of movement and lines, without the distractions of all the details and personalities. In that sense, this falls more in the art category, than entertainment for me. It's definitely a new way of filming and showcasing lindy hop than what I've seen before. What are your thoughts and impressions?

Full credits after the video.

CREDITS:

Music
Music Hall Beat - Illinois Jacquet

Dancers
Alexandra "Sasha" Alhimovich
Ella "Ghost Note" Lejonsteel
Frida "Night Train" Haeggstroem Heart
Gabriella "Black Belt" Rosati
Lizette "Broadway" Roennqvist
Mimmi "Chicopitana" Gunnarsson
Fredrik "Handsome Fred" Dahlberg
Nils "Splitman" Nygardh
Patrik "Slinky" Pettersson
Rikard "Slick Rick" Ekstrand
Sakarias "The Champ" Larsson

Produced, directed, filmed and edited by Sakarias Larsson