United Skates

Charting the closure of skating rinks across the United States, this documentary uncovers a rich and vibrant African–American subculture.

In this debut feature from Brisbane born and raised, now New York based Tina Brown and her co-director Dyana Winkler, the social importance of skating venues for black communities is told through the local stories of those who crafted this roller-skating dance form. Brown and Winkler provide a window into a decades-old pastime and a lively dance scene which is slowly disappearing as rinks become victims of re-zoning by property developers. United Skates traces the emergence of ‘Adult Nights’, a euphemism for the controversial practice in which white neighbourhoods set aside only one night a week for African–American patrons. During ‘Adult Nights’, these sizeable venues transformed into part-skate rink, part-music hall becoming testing grounds for DJs and hip-hop acts.