CORPORATE UNCONSCIOUS AND THE VIDEOWALK FORMAT
1.1 Background and Context
1.2 Research Question
1.3 Objectives and Scope
1.4 Structure of the Thesis
2. Corporate Unconscious 2.1 Credits
2.2 Description
2.3 Video Documentation
2.4 Synopsis
2.5 Full Text
3. Theoretical framework 3.1 Videowalk: Exploring the Format
3.1.1. Walking as a type of art.3.1.2 Audiowalks
3.1.3 The emergence of Videowalk
3.1.4 Choosing the format3.2 Site-Specific Art and Spatial Narratives
3.3 Engaging Audiences in a Constructed Reality
3.3.1 Illusion and Engagement: The Rubber Hand Effect in Theater
3.3.2 We should invent reality before filming it
3.3.3 Simul Entertainment GmbH3.4 Meta-Score
4. Creative process 4.1 Concept Development
4.1.1 Synchronicity and simultaneity.
4.1.2 Corporate Language as a Narrative Tool4.2 Space research
4.3 Development of visual, auditory and performative identity
4.3.1 Corporate Identity
4.3.2 Art Direction and Stage Design
4.3.3 Performativity
4.3.4 Costumes
4.3.5 Music composition
4.3.6 Cinematography4.4 Dramaturgy and Script Development
4.4.1 Narrative Layers
4.4.2 Storytelling
4.4.3 Dramaturgical arc
4.4.4 Space Score and Timing4.5 Videowalk Production phases
4.5.1 Creation of Fake Historical Footage
4.5.2 Videowalk Filming
4.5.3 3D Modeling and Scanning of the Space
4.5.4 VFX Development and 3D Animated Scenes
4.5.5 Documentary Development4.6 Performance and Participation4.6.1 Installations & self-reflective moments
4.6.2 Leveled performances
4.6.3 Fake participants and recursive participation
4.6.4 Easter eggs4.7 Multimedia Techniques
4.7.1 LiDAR Scanning and As-build modeling
4.7.2 On-site shading and texturing
4.7.3 Character and animations
4.7.4 Camera tracking and VFX compositing
4.7.5 Virtual production and "inverse virtual production"
4.7.6 Video Game development
4.7.7 Spatial audio
4.7.8 AI text models
4.7.9 iOS playback app
5. Conclusion
6. Acknowledgments
7. References
4.4 Dramaturgy and Script Development
The dramaturgy and script development of Corporate Unconscious represented an effort to weave together various narrative elements and video content types into a cohesive and immersive experience. Under the guidance of Robin Plenio, we developed a dramaturgical arc strictly related to the space we were performing in. We wanted to generate a narrative that would keep participants engaged in a deeply reflective journey.Inspired by the storytelling techniques in Galactic Cafe’s videogame The Stanley Parable (2013), we aimed to question the participants' understanding of their choices and the level of control they possess within the story's boundaries. The Stanley Parable utilizes a narrator whose omnipresent voice guides, contradicts, and sometimes misleads the player, creating a dynamic interplay between the player's actions and the narrator's commentary. We decided that an omnipresent narrator heard through headphones would be the best way to generate a deep experience for the participants.
The mockumentary genre heavily influenced our approach on building the narrative arc of the piece. Mockumentaries like The Centrifuge Brain Project (2011) by Till Nowak utilize documentary-style filmmaking to present fictional and often absurd subjects with a straight-faced seriousness that invites viewers to question the authenticity of what they are seeing. This approach allowed us to play with the boundaries between reality and fiction, inviting participants to immerse themselves in a world that feels at once familiar and wholly fantastical.
Our narrative begins with the semblance of a traditional documentary, introducing participants to the foundational history and research of Simul Entertainment GmbH through found footage and narrative exposition. As the journey progresses, the experience evolves into a more complex exploration of themes, blending documentary-like segments with surreal and speculative encounters. This transition mirrors the shifting nature of the participant's engagement with the piece, moving from passive observation to active participation in the story.
The entire tour was organized and divided into scenes, referred to as "experiments". Each of these segments was given a distinct title, displayed as lower thirds on the screen in a documentary style. Many of the titles within the performance drew inspiration from the recently published book wir hier versuchen, ihnen das warten zu verschönern, bis sie das buch zu ende gelesen haben (2023) [Here we’ll try to beautify your wait until you have finished reading the book], a collection of short poems by Manos Tsangaris that dig into the act of waiting.