The Hooping Life

Hooping is an art, a dance, a fitness regime, and a spiritual practice. It is one of the hottest trends, catching on with the likes of First Lady Michelle Obama, Beyonce, and Marisa Tomei. Hooping is featured in music videos for Justin Timberlake, Fergie, and P!NK and ads for Coca-Cola and Target. It is a business, filled primarily with young, women entrepreneurs. And it is a subculture - a community of the curious-minded, who are generous in spirit, and possess an undeniable need to express themselves.

THE HOOPING LIFE is the first film that captures the origins and rise of modern day hula-hooping — a.k.a hooping. With an introduction and narration by hooper (of basketball and hula alike) Shaquille O'Neal, the film illuminates eight extraordinary stories of hoop devotees who have embraced it as an art form, a teaching aid, and even an instrument of redemption.

From the streets, to intimate clubs, to giant arenas, the film alternates between self-filmed video diaries, verité documentary footage, and spectacularly filmed performances. Filmed over six years, and featuring an appearance by late hoop-promoter and TV personality Art Linkletter, the film celebrates the healing power of movement and the spirit of human inventiveness.

British electronic duo BASEMENT JAXX provides the buoyant score that captures the free-spirited nature of hooping, with additional music by The Scissor Sisters, and an appearance by popular jam-band The String Cheese Incident.