Philippe Decouflé is a modern French choreographer that was brought to my attention by a contemporary dancer friend of mine. I adore the piece above for its use of light and space to add to the simple yet emotional choreography. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about him:

“Philippe Decouflé born Neuilly-sur-Seine, October 22 1961 is a French choreographer, dancer, mime artist, and theatre director. As a child he travelled extensively around Lebanon and Morocco, before learned his skills as a teenager at the Annie Fratellini ”Ecole du Cirque” and the Marcel Marceau Mime School.

While frequenting Paris|Parisienne nightclubs he discovered and was attracted to contemporary dance, and he eventually moved to the ”Centre National de la Danse Contemporaine” in Angers to study under choreographer Alwin Nicolais.

After briefly working as a solo dancer, he formed the Découflé Company of Arts in Bagnolet in 1983, moving it to a former electrical works in the Parisienne suburb of Saint-Denis in 1995.

He has worked for the Lyon Opera Ballet, and choreographed the music video for New Order’s ”True Faith”. It won the “Best Music Video” prize at the 1988 BRIT Awards, while his advertisement for Polaroid won a “Silver Lion” prize at the 1989 Venice Film Festival. On the back of these successes, he was selected to choreograph the Olympic Games ceremony opening and closing ceremonies of the 1992 Winter Olympics in front of a global television audience of over two billion people, the 50th anniversary Cannes Film Festival in 1997, and a parade for the 2007 Rugby World Cup in Saint-Denis in Paris.”