By Barbara Lee

Students tired of the hip-hop dancing offered from other student groups, can showcase their moves by joining Kinematix.

Recently recognized as an official organization, Kinematix was formed as an outlet for students who are interested in learning traditional and contemporary dance moves rooted in Filipino culture. Its founding members met through NU Barkada, Northeastern’s Filipino organization.

President Malachi “Ky” Hul and Vice President Jamie Siochi were interested in dancing before they arrived at Northeastern. They were disappointed when they arrived at school and found that there were no modern dance groups to join.

Hul and Siochi each started individual dance groups but had few members. That was when they decided to fuse their vision together.

“You see NU Dance do these amazing performances, but nothing that’s solely based on hip hop,” Siochi said. “It’s something new for Northeastern.”

Since then, the group has performed in 12 different shows at venues like afterHOURS, Bellmont High School, the John Hancock fashion show and Too Hot Import Nights in Atlantic City and New Jersey. Kinematix also gets invited to shows by their friends and other people who approach them after performances.

“We have a saying, ‘Someone’s always watching,’ regardless of what we do,” Hul explains. “So we always want to do our best.”

Their favorite performance so far was the Bentley College step competition because of the crowd’s overwhelming enthusiasm, he said.

“The atmosphere was great and it gets your blood going,” Siochi said, noting that quiet crowds make things awkward for them on stage. “We cheer ourselves on when it’s quiet in hopes that the crowd will respond.”

Although Kinematix has been in many performances, the group is still looking to grow and expand. Their ultimate goal is to host their own dance showcase at Blackman Auditorium. Still, Siochi and Hul are worried about how new members will change the close relationships they have developed with each other.

“We have a certain dynamic in the group: we know each other, we hang out with each other,” Siochi said.

While Siochi said dancing is what helped him to break out of his shell in high school, Hul said that his love for dance began with freestyling.

“You have the general people who say, ‘Oh, I love dancing. I love going to the club,’ but all they do is left and right, left and right,” Hul said.

He explained that he attracts attention at clubs because he has a different style.

“I make it an art,” Hul said.

When the group initially formed there was a split between choosing a name: Urban Legends or Epidemic. Siochi, who did not like either name, had a different idea.

“Since kinematics is the study of a motion of bodies or a system of bodies, I thought ‘Oh, wow! That’s so us, because we’re all moving!'” Siochi said. He texted the idea, “Kinematix” to the other group members and the vote was unanimous.

Siochi and Hul expressed a passion for dance that will help them share their art and overcome adversity.

“Most of us in there don’t have a lot of experience,” Siochi said, “but it’s something that we’ve come to love.”