This year Women and Hollywood will be at SXSW. One of the films we are excited to catch is Dayna Hanson’s Improvement Club which is competing in Narrative. Hanson wrote, directed and stars in the film. It is her first feature.

Here’s a description of the film alongside the poster. Be sure to check it out if you are heading to SXSW this year.

When their New York gig falls through, a ragtag, avant-garde performance troupe with a political message struggles to find their audience – and the motivating force behind their work. Their desperate desire to express themselves takes the Seattle-based ensemble into the backwoods of the Pacific Northwest on a surreal pursuit of trust, togetherness, and the true meaning of creativity.

Loosely based on the making of director/writer/choreographer Dayna Hanson's real-life performance piece about the American Revolution, Gloria's Cause, IMPROVEMENT CLUB is a hybrid narrative film with an exhilarating mix of mockumentary, musical comedy, and dance film. Featuring a cast of dancers, singers, and actors with whom Hanson often works, the film lovingly captures the insecurities, struggles, triumphs, and joy of being a performer.

Though written, choreographed, and directed by Hanson, IMPROVEMENT CLUB was a thoroughly collaborative effort amongst the cast and crew. Throughout the script development phase the cast gave input, improvising scenes that were reenactments of real events, or complete fiction, or somewhere in between.