Open City Documentary Festival is underway, and alongside a rich programme of documentary films the festival includes a selection of immersive and interactive documentary pieces, in their Expanded Realities exhibition.
In recent years, expanded strands at documentary festivals have become increasingly common. They offer a great way to experience what’s new in the creative convergence of animation, art, technology, and documentary film. The Open City exhibition showcases several animated and partially animated works. These include The Subterranean Imprint Archive, directed by Francois Knoetze and Amy Louise Wilson, a VR experience that presents a ‘counter-archive’ tracing the legacy of technopolitics in Africa. Infomorph directed by Arash Akbari and Farzaneh Nouri, looks at the relationship between human, machines, and nature through speculative storytelling and experimental imagery. Gondwana, directed by Emma Roberts and Ben Joseph Andrews, is a virtual environment that responds to climate change data projections, exploring possible futures of the world’s rainforests. Surfacing (Affiorare) directed by Rossella Schillaci, portrays mothers and children living in prison – reality, memory, and dreams combining in a visually distinctive world.
Surfacing (Affiorare), 2022
Animation is a natural fit for VR and immersive projects, and expanded production has become a space in which animation (or non-photographic imagery) is embraced and integrated into documentary storytelling in a way not always seen in more traditional documentary. The experimentation inherent in these emerging forms of storytelling creates an unrestricted environment for exploring reality, an exciting space in which genre conventions are not yet concrete.
However, it can be difficult for general audiences to access expanded works in their intended forms. Most people don’t own a VR headset or have access to high-spec hardware, and site-specific installation work is, by nature, geographically limited. Film festivals therefore have an essential role in increasing access to these works.
Expanded Realities runs from Thursday 8th to Tuesday 13th September at the Open City Festival Hub. Entry is free. Opening hours: Fri 9th Sept, 11:00 – 17:00; Sat 10th Sept, 11:00 – 17:00; Sun 11th Sept, 11:00 – 17:00; Mon 12th Sept, 11:00 – 17:00; Tuesday 13th Sept, 11:00 – 14:00
