More about Goran

And that’s what I did. 

I’ve danced professionally for more than seventy different choreographers and directors in the field of performing arts – classical ballet, physical theatre, contemporary dance, film, and video. For over 10 years I was dancing for the Slovene National Ballet Company, from corp de ballet to principal roles (Youri Vámos, John Cranko, Milko Šparemblek, Jeremy Leslie-Spinks, Vlasto Dedivič, Pina & Pio Mlakar, Kurt joss, Istvan Hertzog, Julio Lopez, Peter Breuer, Toer Van Shayk, Irina Lukashova, Ib Anderson, Ronald Hynd​...) and at the same time parallelly enjoyed a rich and versatile career of a freelance artist that brought me to work with many theatre artists and contemporary choreographers from the Slovenian and European art scene (Matjaž Pograjc & Betontanc, Dragan Živadinov, Milko Šparamblek, Francois Michele Pesenti, Ema Kugler, Janes Janša, Howard Katz Fireheart, Micheal Clark...) among many others. I also took part of research projects with Emio Greco, Josef Nadj, David Zambrano, Andrew L.Harwood ... to mention just some of them.

In that quiet, spacious place, I came to a deep realization: I wanted freedom in my dance.

I no longer had the desire to memorize steps, replicate movements, or perform choreographies that felt disconnected from any real meaning. I craved authenticity. I wanted movement that was alive, rooted in presence, and true to the moment.

I made a promise to myself—to master the art of improvisation. To explore the tools, techniques, and languages that would allow me to express myself freely through dance. I wanted to understand how to choreograph from the inside out—through improvisation—and to deepen my performance skills by studying acting, embodiment, and improvisational theatre.

I committed to integrating practices that nourished both body and spirit: martial arts, Eastern philosophies, and meditation. And I envisioned a new way of teaching—one that didn’t rely on demonstrating steps to be copied, but instead invited participants to discover movement from within themselves.

What followed were seven exhilarating years of creating and touring with my own dance company, Fičo Balet. We performed across Slovenia, the UK, Russia, the USA, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Canada, Germany, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Italy, Austria, Croatia, Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Albania...

It was pure Rock’n’Roll. It was skydiving without a parachute. And it was unforgettable.

As the choreographer, dancer, manager, producer, touring agent, and administrator all in one—I wore every hat and ran on passion. Along the way, I received several recognitions and awards, including:

• Triton Award for Best Dance Performance in Slovenia (2000)

• Dance Artist of the Year by Slovenia’s Nedelo magazine (2000)

• DanceWeb Scholarship, Vienna (2000, 2002)

• ArtsLink Award, New York (2003–2004)

• UNESCO Aschberg Award, Montreal (2004)

• Golden Plaque at Albanian Dance Festival (2006)

• Golden Plaque at Moscow Dance Day Festival (2008)
  ...and others.

In my "free" time—if you could call it that—I chased down workshops and teachers all over the world who could teach me more about the art of improvisation. I studied martial arts and meditation, deepening my daily practice. And I began offering my first classes and workshops in dance improvisation.

It was in teaching that I had one of my biggest revelations: I learned the most when I was teaching others.

Then came another breaking point.

I realized that I had poured myself into all the major projects—the Studio, the Platform, the Academy, the Centre for Contemporary Dance Arts—working tirelessly and often for little or no pay. It was simply in my nature to support others and put the community first, rarely thinking of my own needs.

At the same time, I no longer found joy in the rhythm of international touring—going from airport to hotel to theatre and back again, always in transit, disconnected from a sense of home and deeper purpose.

To make things worse, the global financial crisis struck, and the already fragile funding for dance in my country was hit hard. The projects I wanted to pursue no longer had support. What remained were small budgets, which meant constant compromises in the creative process and the burden of asking collaborators to work for less than they deserved.

So, I made a conscious decision to stop. To pause all artistic production. To step back and do... nothing - artistically.

I became broke overnight and had to work all kinds of jobs to break even. I was driving vans, was a librarian, and even took a project in tunnel construction work. 

It was a great challenge, humbling and eye-opening experience but at the same time, it was like a holiday for me, doing simple work, no big decisions, no creative pressure and having a boss telling me what to do:)  

Around that time, I became a father. That changed everything. It sparked a deeper search for meaning and purpose... or at least that’s what I told myself.... 

Yeah, right… A classic midlife chapter, I suppose:) 

I dove into all kinds of transformative practices—Yoga, Breathe-work, Dynamic and Kundalini meditations, Enlightenment Intensives, Qi Gong, Tai Chi, Dervish whirling, Gurdjieff dances, Medicine plants rituals… even Dancing on fire.

Each one cracked me open in a different way and helped me reconnect with something deeper—something I had lost in the hustle of making big and small things happen.

That’s when it hit me—I needed to share my gifts and experience in a completely new way.

I opened up and began offering a unique style of dance classes and workshops that wove together everything I had learned—blending Eastern and Western philosophies into a safe, dynamic, meditative, playful, and deeply creative dance improvisation practice. The tools I shared weren’t just for the studio—they were designed to be applied in everyday life. I called it Ficho Training.

To my surprise, the response was immediate and overwhelming. Every session and workshop filled up—without me spending a single cent on promotion!

Eventually, demand grew so much that I had to bring in other teachers to help carry the load.

Just like an alchemist,  I experimented with countless methods, principles, and techniques—learning through trial and error, refining, and distilling the essence of dance to its core.

Over time, this process gave birth to a body of work containing more than 100 clear and accessible tools—modalities, exercises, games, and principles—that work for any body, regardless of dance background, experience, or level of understanding.

These tools go beyond the studio. They can be applied in everyday life—within relationships, work, and personal growth—and are equally effective in creative processes, classes, workshops, retreats, therapy, coaching, leadership, and transformational spaces.

I witnessed profound transformations—not only in the people I worked with but also within myself.

What I offered was never just a dance class or a workshop. It was an immersive artistic experience—a practice of improvisational dance that trained the body, mind, and spirit. For many, it became a space for healing, therapy, personal growth, spiritual exploration, creativity, and, just as importantly, joy and play.

Participants could extract practical tools and principles they could immediately apply—not only in their dancing, teaching, or facilitating but also in their daily lives, relationships, and professional work.

The modalities and principles I developed have proven to be flexible and universal—adaptable to any teaching or facilitation context, regardless of the background or experience level of the students or clients.

Through this journey, I also discovered the areas I’m most passionate about: dance improvisation, contact improvisation, artistic creation, embodied presence, group consciousness, body-mind-spirit integration, group dynamics, therapeutic movement, leadership skills, team building, synergy, alchemy, and both personal and professional growth.