In Accra, young men earn superhero status with a self-taught performance combining fire-breathing with acrobatics Appearing fearless, unbreakable, and immune to gravity’s pull, in the Ghanaian capital, a group of young men have built a tight brotherhood around playing with fire. Uniting their physical talents under the name the Dragon Boys, a boundary-pushing performance art emerged – without access to formal training – combining fire-breathing with dance, acrobatics, clowning and contortion. Premiered at Tribeca, short film Dragon Boys captures the relentless practice and dedication around which the group’s routines and stunts are developed. Connecting with Dragon Boys member Prince while teaching documentary filmmaking at a summer-school in Ghana, British filmmaker Tom Ringsby returned to Accra to document the group during their time off-stage, and the tireless resolve that brings their act into being.
Gaining steady recognition which has taken them far from Accra, what began as a sharing of skills and a passion for movement among friends has seen the Dragon Boys perform for cruise ships, hotels and circuses across the globe – earning celebrity status in their local neighbourhood as a source of inspiration for journeying beyond the city’s bounds. The result of a three-week creative collaboration, and a suitcase full of film stock, Ringsby captures the Dragon Boys’ community and lifestyle from the inside, and the star power they offer to the next generation, as mentors to the “Baby Dragons” with ambitions to follow in their footsteps .
“I opted to focus on the time away from the noise, when they’re not usually watched or recorded by audiences. Returning to their neighborhoods as role models for the local youngsters who they train and support, I tried to capture them the way the local kids see them – as superheroes.”
