Some stories need time, space, and daring to come fully to life. JUMPKUT’s Special Projects are multi-year artistic ventures that explore bold ideas, complex narratives, and collaborations across disciplines. These works extend beyond the rhythm of a single season, reflecting our commitment to innovation and the evolution of contemporary ballet.
Chasing Windmills
Feature Length Film
Chasing Windmills is a whimsical and dramatic live-action feature-length adaptation of Don Quixote. The film follows a family navigating the challenges of finding common ground in a rapidly changing world, centering on an aging mother caught between memories of her past and the realities of the present. This ambitious project is a collaboration with filmmaker Colton Van Til and Cloudstar Productions, blending narrative depth with visually rich storytelling.
The Afterwords
Animated Feature/Stage Production
Afterwords is a bitter-sweet celebration of life through the exploration of tragedy, envisioned both as a feature-length animated film and a live stage production. Developed in partnership with Double Plus Productions, the story is set in a rural American town in the 1990s, grappling with the sudden loss of a beloved young football star. Each character navigates their personal reflections while the community collectively mourns and heals, offering glimpses of the life that will never be. Through this dual-format approach, Afterwords transforms grief into a poetic narrative, honoring the resilience of a community and the fragility of life.
The Starcleaners Reunion
Feature Film
A feature-length adaptation of Cooper Edens’ award-winning book, StarCleaners Reunion brings a fantastical world to life through dance and film. Executive Artistic Director Price Suddarth was hand-picked by Edens to create the movement and expand the story from a 64-page children’s book into a full-length feature. Follow a group of larger-than-life characters as they come together to save their world from darkness, blending choreography, animation, and cinematic storytelling into a magical, cross-disciplinary experience.