Max Schleser
Nature reclaiming architectural requiems
The experimental Cinematic Virtual Reality experience is an exploration of a former German industrial coal and steel production site, which transformed into a public park in 1994. The last shift was worked on the 4 April 1985 and the former ‘Wirtschaftswunder’ turned into an industrial wasteland. The ironworks are not only a symbol of ‘Wertewandel’, the change of values, but also symbolises our addiction to artificial energy and its transformation into wealth. As a side product of the last century’s heavy industry, we are now faced with a climate crisis.
A New Dawn is a memory-scape, which takes a critical approach and uses the Aurora Borealis as an audio-visual representation of life out of balance. Imagine the magnetic fields have shifted through climate change and the collision of electronically charged particles would happen in our proximity. The Aurora’s symbolise a geomagnetic storm caused by nature’s exclamation of the ecological crises. Simultaneously the interpretation of Aurora’s in dreams signifies a positive outlook. A dream with an Aurora means important things will happen and ‘magnetic’ outcomes are about to appear on the horizon.
Field recording: Simon Longo
Soundtrack: Paulo Hartmann and Andre Namur
Mix ambisonics: Daniel Sasso
Artist Bio
Max Schleser (BA Hons, MA, PhD) is Senior Lecturer in Film and Television and Researcher in the Centre for Transformative Media Technologies (CTMT) at Swinburne University of Technology (Melbourne, Australia), Adobe Education Leader, Founder of the Mobile Innovation Network & Association (www.mina.pro) and Screening Director of the International Mobile Innovation Screening & Festival. Max’s research expertise are Immersive Media and Creative Arts 4.0 with a focus on Cinematic VR and interactive filmmaking. His research explores Screen Production, Emerging Media and Smartphone Filmmaking for community engagement, creative transformation and transmedia storytelling.