A shot-for-shot remake of a scene from Federico Fellini’s 1963 film 8 ½. Digital video. ORT 11 min 08 sec.

This scene – the protagonist’s daydream, a fantasy – has always fascinated me. It’s disturbing in plenty of ways: the exoticization of the harem, the infantilization of the man. But it’s also telling as an exploration of choice and wish fulfillment. In this character’s wildest dreams, he is at the center of a harem, a place where he’s limited, stunted, and childlike. I chose to remake the scene in a Bollywood studio in Mumbai, India, with a cast of classical dancers, allowing the original material of the film to mingle with Indian gender scripts and big-screen campiness.