2. Corporate Unconscious

2.1 Credits

Artistic Direction: Diego Muhr
Dramaturgy: Robin Plenio

Music: Lucas Schlotfeld
Audio design: Diego Muhr
Audio postproduction, spatial audio: Carmen Kleykens Vidal

Costume design: Hannah Trusch

As-built 3D Modeling: Nicolas Tracio Fuentes Wilson
Unreal development, 3D Modelling: Diego Muhr
Unreal advice: Leonhard Onken-Menke

Video production: Diego Muhr, Robin Plenio
Production Manager: Irini Aravidou

Technical direction: Victor Gutiérrez Cuiza
Technical assistance: Lucas Xerxes

Documentation: Öncu Gültekin, Marianne Harlé, Tam Thi Pham, Webcast HfMT

Voice acting: Todd Harrop, Richard Daleki, Perry Fyferwerkies

Performance: João Carlos Pinto, Dorothea Koch, Nathaniel Ouzana,

Alicia Reyes, Fiona Xue Ju, Irini Aravidou, Nicolás Tracio Fuentes

Project part of the WEPRODUCE residency, at the LICHTHOF Theater.

With the kind support of Goran Lazarevic, the HOOU-HfMT team and Forum HfMT.

2.2 Description

Corporate Unconscious is an immersive Videowalk performance conceived by Diego Muhr and Robin Plenio that presents the mysterious and speculative research of Simul Entertainment GmbH. This Hamburg-based company, founded in the early '90s, dedicated itself to studying the concept of synchronicity – meaningful coincidences without causal connection, as defined by Carl Jung. Despite the disappearance of the company in the mid-'90s, its ambitious plans left behind an archive of intriguing research, experiments, and corporate materials.

Participants of Corporate Unconscious embark on a tour, guided by a prerecorded video displayed on iPads. They are introduced to the visionary yet controversial projects of Simul Entertainment through a narrative that seamlessly blends contemporary images, archival "found footage," and 3D animated scenes. The experience is framed by two distinct narrative voices, one echoing the historical experiments of Simul and the other providing a documentary-style commentary, creating a layered storytelling experience that connects past research with the participants' present journey.

The videowalk navigates through a series of experiments that explore the boundaries of human experience, perception, and the potential for synchronicity to influence our lives. From analyzing the simultaneity of urban traffic lights to investigating the effects of gravity on human synchronization, participants are invited to reconsider the interconnectedness of their actions and surroundings. The narrative arc progresses from a documentary-like exploration to self-reflective and speculative moments, challenging participants to question their role in the larger experiment of synchronicity.

The final stages of the tour invite introspection and a reevaluation of one's perception of synchronicity, culminating in a strange moment of stillness and contemplation.

Corporate Unconscious invites participants to explore the unseen connections that bind us, leaving them with lingering questions about fate, free will, and the unseen forces that shape our lives.

2.3 Video Documentation

2.3.1 Full videowalk

This video is the exact content that was displayed in the iPads of the participants of Corporate Unconscious. Please mind that some sections are audio only, or completly black, because in some moments of the tour, participants interacted with live performers and installations.

2.3.2 Documentation + Interviews

2.4 Synopsis

We start in a preparatory room, where the context is set through a contract outlining the journey's expectations and safety considerations. Once signed, we are given an iPad that has a countdown.

Once the count hits zero, we get some information on the screen about the company. A narrative introduction presents Simul Entertainment GmbH, founded in the early '90s in Hamburg, dedicated to researching synchronicity.

This section introduces the concept of synchronicity, inviting us to contemplate a world where every moment and action is interconnected and purposeful. The narrator evokes images of a world paused for a moment, where human hearts and breaths align, and life's seemingly random events – from traffic lights syncing to receiving a call from a just-thought-of friend – are controlled and meaningful. It sets the stage for an exploration into Simul Entertainment's research, a company dedicated to harnessing synchronicity to create purposeful connections between people and their environments.

The walk leads the participant downstairs, towards the basement.

Through promotional footage, A commercial of Simul is shown. It promises a life transformed by synchronicity, where chance encounters are replaced with deliberate, meaningful interactions.

Once inside the building, a first experiment is shown as found footage. It shows a room filled with traffic lights. The narrator explains how the room serves as a metaphor for the inherent synchronicity in urban life, where the coordinated dance of traffic lights mirrors the potential for human alignment.

An experiment on Gravitational Studies - The Right Moment - ventures into the scope of physics, questioning how gravity influences synchronization and positing the existence of alternative gravitational environments that could enhance human harmony.

Coincidental Encounters shows some Simul Workers standing and meeting at a specific intersection. The narrator explains how their heart rate is collected and analyzed, to determine whether it would be possible to synchronize it between different persons.

In Wait Loop we see the subconscious alignment of individuals queued up, revealing how people in seemingly mundane situations can unconsciously sync up. For the first time we see another participant with an iPad, who observes us from a distance. At some point the video suddenly shifts to the right, so we follow it, moving the iPad accordingly.

We go upstairs and find Together / At the same time where we see a security control room with a Simul working staring at a pile of TV’s. The footage inside the screens consist of other Simul workers having sexual relations. The narrator describes how Simul attempts to align sexual responses among participants, exploring the intimate dimensions of human connection and the shared rhythms of pleasure.

Continuing upstairs, we find the first installation of the piece, called The Full Score. There we see a small TV and a thermal printer that prints a long score for us. The narrator explains that this experiment studies the spontaneous synchronization of movements in crowded spaces, offering insights into the collective dynamics that govern human behavior in densely populated settings.

We come back to the room where we started the piece, and we look at it from the outside. In The Waiting Room II, we see a meta-experiment that turns participants into subjects of study, prompting them to reflect on their behavior in a controlled environment.

We go back downstairs, and now we are the one who observes the upcoming participant. In our video, they show up as a Simul worker. When in the video, the worker turns their body to the right on a sudden movement, the participant does the same. The narrator describes how the work of Simul led to disregard because of lack of substance. It does not comment on the encounter that just happened.

The video leads us to a door, once inside we are in a very small room called Transferbüro. The screen turns black and we hear a jingle. The narrator brings personal questions about our experience during the tour. After some time, the tour continues.

We open the next door and we find ourselves in a creepy hallway. The voice of the narrator overlaps the voice of the original footage, asking us questions about how much do we like lining up or waiting for things, and if we experience discomfort during the tour. We see The Wait Accelerates where a big group of Simul workers move in synchrony.

Once out of the hallway we access the modern section of the HfMT, and we enter a large room called ELA1. Inside we see a real-life performer dressed as a Simul worker, surrounded by mannequins. They all look exactly the same. The screen turns black and the narrator invites us to stand in front of the performer, and try to synchronize our breathing with them.

After two minutes of no actions, we are invited to sit in the corner, where there is a questionnaire ready to be filled. Just then, another participant enters the room and stands in front of the performer. We are required to observe this participant and answer questions about them.

The video comes back and we leave the room, walking through the modern side of the HfMT. In Poème Symphonique, we hear metronomes clicking and we see a room full of them. It reflects on natural and artificial systems’ spontaneous synchronization, drawing a parallel to Gyorgy Ligeti’s original piece.

While walking, we access the practice rooms area. The video cuts to I Almost Didn’t See You, A series of experiments where we deepen into an introspection on synchronicity, exploring how it affects personal perceptions of time and control. Multiple countdowns mark our steps, as we constantly meet other participants, which show in our tablet as Simul workers. The narrator has completely lost its original documentary voice, and turned into some yoga instructor that questions all our decisions.

In the middle of the intense interweaving of old footage, and animations, we are invited to sit down at a table, where another participant is sitting. We arrived at The Waiting Room III. The video stops and we hear bossa nova for almost four minutes. The next participant comes and we are invited to observe them.

The video comes back and we are conducted to the MFS room to enter The Final Experiment. Inside, we see a table with a small TV, and a big technological object in the middle of the room. The screen turns black again, and we sit down in front of the TV, which shows the image of a Simul Worker. In the foreground, the creepy corridor we saw before. We are invited to watch the image and remember it. Then, we go around the room, and realize that the big object is actually a massive screen in a U shape, a "light corridor". The screen shows the same background we saw before, and inside there are live performers as Simul Workers. The narrator draws a parallel between what you see now, and what you saw before at the small TV. The tour now brings us to the third step of the experiment, inside a small technical room located at the corner of MFS. Inside, we are required to sit down and play a computer game, which looks like a 3d representation of the whole tour we have done, from the very beginning.

We leave the small room using a back door, and walk a long way through the hallways. We just see a simple video, without more interruptions. The narrator gets in a documentary mood again, and addresses the ethical limits and lasting impact of Simul Entertainment’s speculative research.

We go outside, to an open field. There is a big sculpture with the shape of the logo of Simul.

We give the iPad back.

2.5 Full Text

The full text can be accessed here.