Change is an opportunity and a force—with this optimistic view, the 2024 DOK Neuland programme presents eleven works from the fields of VR, AR, 360° film, gaming, installation and participatory film. The exhibition runs from 29 October to 3 November and is spread across four locations in Leipzig: in the Museum of Fine Arts (MdbK), at the main station, in the Galerie KUB and in the Cinémathèque Leipzig.
“Change is not only unavoidable, it is indispensable. Change is our life force, and without it we cease to exist. The key is deciding where we want to go,” says artist and filmmaker Dana Melaver, who began curating DOK Neuland this year. Under the exhibition title “Fluxusopolis”, she’ll present works that are constantly evolving, that generate “realities” that are not (or no longer) real, and that challenge our idea of art. Some of the works are vehicles for placing ourselves in other bodies and worlds (“Finally Me”, “Glitschbodies”), experiencing the world in a non-human way (“Nut Universe”), or becoming part of a life that otherwise remains distant and intangible due to our everyday habituation to news (“Tales of a Normadic City”, “Murmurnation”).
Other works will also play with our common understanding of art and creation: “Nothing Can Ever Be the Same” invites us to engage with the “imaginations” of a machine that endlessly generates new worlds of images and sounds from Brian Eno's visual archive and music. “AR Character Run” only becomes a work through the cooperation of visitors to the exhibition—a film for everyone, constantly changing. “Minitourism” explores the ideas of creating (artistic) worlds and virtual reality as a medium using a miniature park.
A work such as “Reconstruction Home”, on the other hand, allows realities suffered in the real world to be changed in the virtual world. In it, a house destroyed in the war is reanimated with the memories of its former inhabitants and augmented reality. And in “Oto's Planet”, we encounter the fragile existence on our world with the distance of cheerfulness and black humor.
"In this time of violence, of xenophobia and dehumanisation, it is necessary to forge a path towards change which is derived from empathy. To become a force for change, rather than have change forced upon us,” says curator Melaver of this year’s DOK Neuland motif. “We must learn to become a force for change ourselves instead of helplessly surrendering to it.”
DOK Neuland: Interactive Cinema this year will also include a participatory film as part of the exhibition. “Traces of Responsibility” takes viewers to Rwanda, 30 years after the genocide. With the help of an app, the audience will vote at the screening on which narrative threads they wish to follow.
DOK Neuland is free of charge. For Interactive Cinema tickets are required (ticket sale starts on 10 October). The exhibition takes place with thanks to Dana Melaver (curation), Johanna Gerlach (production), and Ingmar Stange (technical production). The scenography was created in collaboration with Robin Metzer.
Overview of the XR works at DOK Neuland: List of XR experiences at DOK Neuland
DOK Exchange XR Expands to Two Days, XR Prototyping Zone Makes Debut
DOK Industry is extending its DOK Exchange XR format in response to the growing relevance of immersive media and the rapid advancements in digital technology shaping the industry. The Industry programme for interactive and immersive storytelling with a focus on XR works, DOK Exchange XR, is now expanding into two full days for the first time, taking place on 31 October and 1 November. Alongside XR Conference and XR Showcase, this year’s programme also marks the debut of XR Prototyping Zone, a space dedicated to testing projects and bridging creators with audiences, XR experts, and distributors.
The 2024 DOK Exchange XR’s roster of events will centre on the unbounded potential of immersive and spatial sound, delving into the art of crafting spatial audio narratives, diverse immersive sonic worlds, 3D soundscapes, and voice storytelling. The programme will further burrow into the creative process of creating spatial audio experiences in documentaries and artistic XR projects, examine various forms of spatial audio storytelling beyond XR, and weigh in on the ethical quandaries of AI in sound and voice creation, among other topics.
The 2-day XR Conference (31 October and 1 November) will comprise ten keynote presentations and two panel discussions. The invited speakers will address various aspects of spatial audio in immersive storytelling in their keynote presentations, ranging from sound design psychology and sound as dramaturgy to de-territorialised listening in spatial audio narratives and immersive sound curation, to name a few. The panel discussion ‘Spatial Sound Across Art Forms: The Best Practices for Integrating Immersive Audio in Film, XR, Interactive Media, and Storytelling’ will be moderated by Dr. Markus Zaunschirm and joined by Anan Fries, Malu Peeters, Shervin Saremi, and Oliver Kadel. The second panel ‘From Prototype to Perfection: Lessons from Audience Testing and the Importance of Feedback in the Prototyping Process’ will be led by Dr. Weronika Lewandowska (DOK Exchange XR Coordinator), with the participation of Laurien Michiels (“The Room of Resonance”) and Anne Fehres and Luke Conroy (“Revival Roadshow”).
At XR Showcase (31 October), six cutting-edge projects in development will be presented to an audience of professionals. The presentation of the XR works-in-progress, moderated by Dr. Joanne Popińska, will be followed by a feedback session with 30 experts from the fields of research, funding, distribution, as well as arts and technology. The 2024 XR Showcase project selection features “BOUGHT/BROKEN” (USA), “Scratching the Surface” (Germany), “LID-SCAPE” (Colombia), “Snow, Tiger, Reunion” (UK, the Netherlands, Switzerland), “YerbaBruja” (Mexico), and “ENTROPY” (Montenegro).
In XR Prototyping Zone, running from 31 October to 1 November, two prototypes—“Revival Roadshow” (the Netherlands) and “The Room of Resonance” (Germany)—will be showcased onsite, allowing for direct audience engagement and testing of XR projects, including the probing of their interactive elements and narrative solutions, as well as onboarding and offboarding experiences in spatial conditions.
