This was Kayla Incontro and my first time shooting together. We utilized a variety of indoor and outdoor locations in the Bay Area, and created a huge amount of epic shots.
You can follow Kayla on IG here @KayinContro and keep an eye on the Zine for more shoots with her in the future.
-Oliver Endahl
Elseana Skowronski is a talented dancer based in the San Francisco Bay Area. We’ve shot together many times over the years.
Below is an interview with Elseana + photos from our latest shoot.
Top 5 favorite movies ever (in no order; just 5 movies)
Dirty Dancing, You’ve Got Mail, The Wedding Planner, Chicago, 500 Days of Summer
Favorite movie of 2024!
Wicked, hands down. I’m not really one to go to the theaters much or explore very many new movies. Usually when movies are heavily hyped I inevitably am disappointed. Wicked lived up though. Obsessed.
Does your relationship to dance feel different now than it used to? (Put another way; Has your relationship with dance changed at all?)
Definitely! I used to get much more caught up in the perfection of it all and get very stressed out by the performance aspect. I don’t dance as much as I would like anymore, but I definitely have more of an appreciation for just the movement and artistry of it all. I also unfortunately deal with a lot of chronic pain, so that has had an effect on the way I move my body. I think over all I am much more gentle and forgiving of myself when I dance now!
What music artists do you listen to?
Soooo many! My top artists this year were Olivia Dean, Hozier, SZA, Kendrick Lamar, and Noah Kahah, which I think represents my music taste pretty well.
What brings you joy?
Lately my friends/family/community has felt especially warm and important to me. Also music, flowers and my house plants, and art :)
Is it important for people to have hobbies?
I would argue yes! I think it shapes you into a full human. I think it’s easy to get caught up in work/school/responsibilities/etc. but if you don’t have enjoyable interests, what’s the point of life really?
Do you enjoy traveling? If so, what’s been a recent favorite trip of yours?
I do! I have been traveling more and more lately and I went on a lot of fun trips this year. Most recent fav was definitely Sri Lanka! It was my first time out of the country and I went to see one of my best friends! I got to spend some good quality time with her, ate a lot of really good food, swam in the ocean, and fulfilled a life long dream of seeing elephants in the wild hehe.
Where do you think the genre of repertory dance should go? Is there anything you want to see more of?
I would love to see repertory dance become more accessible to viewers and more inclusive in its representation. I feel like art deserves to be seen and felt and experienced by the masses, and that’s difficult when it is often catered toward such a small demographic.
What is your current go to “feel good” show?
Always Gilmore Girls and How I Met Your Mother!
What is a movie you saw this year that you liked but probably won’t rewatch?
This is actually a really difficult question because I am a major re-watcher, even if the film was mediocre lol. I think maybe this move called Love At First Sight. I technically have already watched this twice… But the first time was during a movie night I had with a friend and we literally talked through the entire thing, so I went back to watch again, and though it was a cute and enjoyable watch, we weren’t missing much by talking through it lol.
You can follow Elseana on IG here @Elseana.Dance
Till next time,
-Oliver Endahl
Hunter and I shot together in the San Francisco Bay Area in May of this year.
We started the shoot at Bernal Heights in SF.
Bernal is a beautiful spot to shoot with stunning views of the city.
The wind was a bit intense, (to say the least) but Hunter was a trooper and played off the energy and vibe of the wind with some of the poses.
After we finished at Bernal Heights, we went to a nearby neighborhood and used this gorgeous garden spot that had lovely vinery and foliage.
After the garden area, we headed to the coast and shot at Ocean Beach for sunset.
As you can see, Hunter is a talented dancer with huge charisma and a unique movement quality. It’s always a blast creating with her and this shoot was especially fun.
You can follow Hunter on IG here.
Till next time,
-Oliver Endahl
