Dance, commonly relegated to the background, is the main character in “Carmen.”

Choreographer and former ballet dancer Benjamin Millepied pushes the boundaries of dance in his feature directorial debut. Using movement to reinvent the Georges Bizet 1875 opera (and moving the story from Spain to the modern-day U.S.-Mexico border), Millepied tells a story rooted in dance.

So what is a dance feature film?

While dancers and filmmakers alike are still exploring the art form, “Carmen” offers a glimpse into its potential. The movie uses dance as a narrative tool to advance the characters and plot forward — something that is rarely seen in a feature film.

“It’s all about the body,” “Carmen” cinematographer Jörg Widmer said. “It’s all about the beauty of some steps or jumps.”

The film follows Carmen (“In the Heights” star Melissa Barrera) as she flees her home in Mexico after her mother’s murder. When she crosses into the U.S., she comes across Marine-turned-border-patrolman Aidan (“Aftersun’s” Paul Mescal) and his partner. A lethal standoff ensues and the outcome leads Carmen and Aidan to seek refuge together in Los Angeles. In the race for safety and a new life, the two often explore their internal conflicts through movement.

The cinematographer often cuts to close-ups of body parts like a hand, elbow or face in the middle of a conversation and sits there for a seemingly uncomfortable amount of time. But in paying attention to the body, the storytelling is amplified. For example, as Aidan reconnects with an old friend, his PTSD rears its head. Instead of focusing on the face, Widmer moves the camera up, focusing on the friend gripping Aidan’s arm. As Aidan shuffles, body language becomes the central voice, saying everything about his past while a trivial conversation occurs in the present.

“He wanted to tell the story,” Widmer said of Millepied. “He didn’t only want to make it a great dance movie, he wanted to integrate it to tell the common story as a drama.”

Integration is key to a dance film. In the zeitgeist of dance cinema, dance films are usually musicals (including “La La Land,” “High School Musical” and Broadway adaptations) or rehearsal process films (think “Step Up,” “Center Stage” and “Climax.”)