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Benjamin Millepied on ‘Black Swan,’ Natalie Portman and his dancing future

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On the eve of the DVD release of “Black Swan,” dancer/choreographer Benjamin Millepied has a slew of new creative irons in the fire, including the rather frenzied public anticipation of his first child with fiancée Natalie Portman, his pas de deux partner in the heralded film.

Anticipating the chance to watch the film for the first time on DVD, Millepied cites his favorite choreographic moment in the film as “Natalie.” Against claims that the Oscar winner’s body double carried much of the dancing, Millepied defends her passionately. “Honestly, 85% of that movie is Natalie,” he says.

A longtime resident of New York City, the French-born Millepied, 33, is still foremost a dancer/choreographer, though he’s done some modeling (for Club Monaco’s fall campaign) and just directed his first commercial (which he chooses not to name yet).

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Currently at work on a commission for the Pennsylvania Ballet (the company featured in ‘Black Swan’), Millepied looks to be solving his competing passions (filmwork and dance) by installing live video cameras onstage to augment the audience experience.

“I think directing and choreographing have such a similarity,” he says. “How to work with movement and motion and narration and emotion and creating images.”

Click here to read more about Millepied on ‘Black Swan,’ Portman and his future in dance.

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Movie review: ‘Black Swan’

-- Jean Lenihan

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