Charlie Kaufman’s psychological drama I’m Thinking of Ending Things is full of surprises and bold choices. One of the more ambiguous and widely talked about moments comes in the form of a performance from the musical “Oklahoma!,” which has sparked many “What does it all mean?” theories and YouTube video essays. But there’s another musical moment that gets right to the heart of the film–the desire and longing for human connection–and that’s the ethereal ballet sequence.

Cinemacy is excited to premiere the piano rendition of “Dream Ballet” from the original score of I’m Thinking of Ending Things by composer Jay Wadley and pianist Timo Andres. Timo effortlessly performs this 4 hand piano version with such mesmerizing grace and precision. In addition to the lovely musical interpretation, the short film’s double exposure of Timo playing both piano parts also acts as a visual nod to the unique, Kaufman-esque style of filmmaking.

Check out the video below:

Says Jay, “After finishing [I’m Thinking of Ending Things], I was very excited to find an opportunity to create a two-piano version of the ballet in the tradition of transcriptions of the ballets of Stravinsky, Tchaikovsky, and many others. It’s always a funny thing hearing a composition you wrote for one instrumentation or medium translated to another. This piece really evolves and takes on a new life of its own, developing into something entirely fresh while reflecting concepts and themes of the film both visually and, of course, musically.”

After watching Timo’s stripped-down version, check out Jay’s original orchestral version of “Dream Ballet” below.

You can watch I’m Thinking of Ending Things in concert at the Film Music House, presented by White Bear PR, at the virtual Sundance Film Festival.