THE FEELING IS MUTUAL

documentation material

See prototype here > http://www.digitalfeminism.net/2020x/artworks/mutualfeeling/

I FEEL U is a hybrid experience that explores core emotions by playing with projections, the senses and the imagination of the audience. The piece lives in a physical and digital space mixing a 360° video format, 3D objects, audio and live performance – aiming to generate moments of connection between the two types of audiences (online and on site) and the performers as a balanced trifecta. The project reflects on the fluidity of human feelings by looking for new ways to empathize; a reminder that you’re not the only one.

The first prototype of I FEEL U, developed with the support of HAU Hebbel am Ufer and DGTL FMNSM under the name The Feeling is Mutual, was born out of a pause – of life as we know it. As we found ourselves lacking social interaction, we craved for artistic alternatives to come in touch with one another. It is set inside a filmed performance shot with a 360 degree camera. This digital platform combines multi-media content and planes while allowing the audience to make their own path through non-linear stories. Using four core human emotions as the foundation for the content and the architecture of the piece, the audience can move and interact with this world by clicking on 3D objects floating around a previously recorded performance. Each object leads them into another space with a more detailed part of the overall act, which creates a patchwork-like aesthetic with multiple enhanced points of view. Within “Diskurs” the goal is to transfer all the previous discoveries made into an in-person, multimedia LIVE performance. The merger of digital and physical spaces to open up new artistic possibilities.

PHYSICAL DIMENSION. This in-person space is an interdisciplinary setting that seamlessly combines media, materiality and plastic arts in order to host a narrative; utilising projections, lights, video and sound as well as the physical body. In order to transfer the digital experiences presented in the previous prototypes to a physical space, different kinds of materials, such as holographic screens, meshes, tulle, translucent fabrics and metal or wood will be used. The aim is to create a space that is as fluid as the concept. For this, we’ll use the flexibility and malleability of the scenography to recreate shapes the opposite of rigid. At the same time, the space is contained within a structured architectural blueprint and intentional placement of stations.

THEME / CONTENT. The discoveries made while researching excitement, contentment, distress, and depression – led to creating a performance based on them. The project’s dramaturgy will boil down to these concepts and human identity through them. Recollection of data and real time analytics of what people say they feel can come into play,, so that beholding a narrative becomes a sensorial experience of empathy. Multiple possibilities of connection – digitalization as a means of feeling human.

APPEALING TO THE SENSES. We’d look into the use of sensors or sensorial triggers through touch, sight and sound. For this last one, there was a helpful discovery made during the last research residency. It entails Wwise, an audio rendering software that works as an add on to Unity. It allows for more auditory sensitivity based on spatial awareness and positioning. Further research on materiality within virtual spaces is also a topic the project itself demands to delve into. In order to transmit sensations and feelings through digital platforms, it’s necessary to portray textures, movement and colours within virtual elements so that the audience can relate to them more strongly.

METHODS TO ENGAGE. In regards to acting and movement dramaturgy, the actions will be based on the use of kinesthetic empathy to bring the audience and performers together. This phenomenon refers to the spectator’s sense of participating in the observed movements and to feel the effect of reviving memories of previous experiences with the same muscular paths. We believe that this entanglement of research languages can exponentially increase the potential of the work.

ABOUT US. The four women involved are international multidisciplinary artists from different countries, upbringings and cultural backgrounds – Guatemala, Brasil, Mexico and Germany. Specialized in movement, materiality, dramaturgy and sound design. Diversified experience and an interdiscipliary approach do enrich the project by making it globally relevant and transparent. The hope is that YOU and I can relate and find ways of meaning the phrase I FEEL U, via physical and digital encounters.