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Chris Brown to Star in “Planet B-Boy” Feature

Calvin — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 21:31:39 +0000

Let’s just ignore the fact that there are a million possible Rihanna jokes that could result from this — according to The Hollywood Reporter, Chris Brown, Josh Holloway (“Lost”), Laz Alonso, Caity Lotz, and Josh Peck (“The Wackness”) will star in the feature film version of “Planet B-Boy.”

Shooting began in Los Angeles and continues in Montpellier, France.

The film is said to be “about an all-star American b-boy crew training to compete in France at the Battle of the Year (BOTY) International Championships. After a decade of defeat, the crew and their coach must go up against the best and greatest b-boys in the world: the Koreans, the Russians and the French who have dominated the original American dance form for the last 10 years.”

Well, alright.

While I personally can’t help but imagine Chris Brown smiling a lot and Josh Peck saying things like “Oh word? That’s dope!” while people do headspins in the background, I like to think the film is in good hands.

In a 2008 interview we had with director Benson Lee, he spoke a lot about the importance of persistence in gaining the trust of dancers like Ken Swift, Storm, and Trac2.

He also had the following to say about the current state of dance flicks:

“After everything that I’ve learned from making this documentary, the last thing that I wanted to do was make a movie about a b-boy who falls in love with a ballerina. And it’s really important that I take everything that I’ve learned from this culture and try to portray it within a fiction context.

“And it’s going to be challenging, and one of the things that I have to do is I have to work with real b-boys. There’s no way I can get a studio dancer to portray authentically what this culture is about. And so right now, I’m working with consultants who are actual b-boys and b-girls while also working with a writer.

“I made a promise to myself that I can’t come out there after making Planet B-Boy and make another hip-pop movie on street dance. I’m really dedicated to making a movie about b-boys and try to make it really correct.”

We’re excited to see him run it, run it.

UPDATE: The following message from Lee can be found on the Planet B-Boy Facebook page:

“Dear peeps, I understand your concerns but I want you to know that Chris Brown is just one of 13 main characters in the crew. The other 12 are real b-boys including Do-knock, Kasper, Kid David, Abstrak to name just a few. We also have an additional 20 characters who are ALL played by some of the best b-boys in America. In addition, we will be filming our movie at the real Battle of the Year at the end of this month in France. We are also including Top9 from Russia, and Pockemon from France, and a star studded Korean dreamteam made up of the best b-boys from Korea. As the director of Planet B-boy, I am proud to work with Chris Brown because he has a deep respect for b-boys, and the truth is he’s the only mainstream dancer/actor who can legitimately dance b-boy moves. We are making a fictional movie (w/o corny romance) and we have to work with actors. My principal cast is awesome period. We’ve already begun filming and they’ve killed it by playing real characters with a real story. So before you judge our film, I ask that you wait and see it first because as the director of Planet B-boy, I guarantee you that this is going to go above and beyond what you will expect of the fictional version of my doc. Anyway, thanks for being fans of the doc. I promise you that I wont let you down!”

SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter

The Best of B-Boy Bowling

Calvin — Tue, 17 May 2011 18:39:06 +0000

I mean, what else are those slick floors really good for?

For the sake of variation, you can try a backspin instead of a headspin:

Or you can rock the beat of the pins:

Apparently, this whole bowling alley bowling phenomenon is ubiquitous to the point where battles can spontaneously break out in front of the snack bar:

Or you can blend the activities by instating a “one roll, one run” rule:

Have you done this before? Is b-boy bowling the new b-boying at Walmart?

Lonestar Releases “The Lost Dance of Hip Hop” Photo Book

Calvin — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 23:39:56 +0000

Hey doesn't Born do that fr--OMGAH IT'S BORN

So you’re looking for some kind of b-boy-themed Christmas gift, but your mockneck collection is already spilling out of your closet. You want something classy — something that’s not going to soaked in sweat. Something your parents might appreciate.

Well damn, you tell me what’s more grown up than a coffee table book.

Lonestar of the Massive Monkees recently released his book that, in his words, “takes you over 10 years of documentation which captures the energy of B.boys battling freezing and their individual styles from all over the world.”

We had the pleasure of meeting the UK photographer back in the day at IBE, and as anyone who’d met the dude can testify, he’s got personality and skills for days.

Don’t tell him I told you, but he practices his photographic timing by pretending to snap pictures at video clips, familiarizing himself with b-boys’ sets. Yeah. Dude’s that serious. He’s also got a way with the ladies, but that’s another story.

Prices on the book range from $54 to $70, so don’t let your b-boy friends put McDonald’s on your copy.

Check it out here.

Trailer Tuesday

Calvin — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 17:42:56 +0000

Tribute to New York City from Breaker NYC on Vimeo.

It may the first and last one ever, but today is officially Trailer Tuesday at More Than A Stance. We don’t usually post this kind of stuff (we figure the countless b-boy forums and YouTube spammers already have that on lock), but these caught our eye, and I can’t resist sharing them.

First up, up above is a nice clip sent to us by the people at Breaker NYC. The title says it all; the video shows a compilation of New York City’s best b-boys, past and present. For those who don’t know, consider it a lesson, and for those who do, it’s a nice stroll down memory lane.

Click the jump to see our other pick–a stylish and notorious one, at that.

Okay, I lied. The other pick is actually a trilogy: a day-by-day series covering this year’s Notorious IBE. We had the honor of being flown out this year, and among others, we had the pleasure of getting to chill a bit with the good people from Style2ouf.

To really appreciate this series, consider that each video was filmed and edited and uploaded all the same day when there were already a million events happening. It’s nuts.

Keep an eye out for cameos from the likes of Alien Ness and Martha Cooper, and to check the rest of the episodes, head to the official IBE site.

Seen any trailers you think we should post? Leave a comment and let us know.

Sneak Peek: New Nike Prototype Shoes

Calvin — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 12:59:57 +0000

A source showed us some fresh (literally and figuratively) Nikes that are said to be made specially for b-boying. He requested anonymity, but suffice it to say that it’s a world-famous b-boy who deserves dope free shoes.

And where, you might ask, are we meeting people who get free Nike prototype shoes?

Uh, stay tuned.

Converse Caters to B-Boys

Calvin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 20:21:47 +0000

The sides rip easily, the bottom lining falls apart after a few sessions, and the rubber caps attack my toenails, but dang it, I suddenly feel like buying Converse.

And a yellow shirt.

Hey, good marketing is good marketing.

LINK: Converse CoStar
SOURCE: Bboy.org