eavesdrop

David Pledger, Jeffrey Shaw: 2004

Presented in a 360-degree purpose-built cinematic environment, 10 people are forever doomed to repeat 9 minutes of their lives. Exploring terrain that is at once spiritual, moral, ethical, psychological and physical, this ingeniously crafted artwork is driven by any member of the public who, as the free radical user-director, reveals the secrets embedded in the interconnected stories.

Each narrative (life) emphasises a spiritual, moral, ethical, psychological or physical landscape: a young man tries to escape the suburbs, a minor celebrity wrestles with his conscience, an elderly couple work out how they might end their lives, a political activist is intent on a new revolution, two young boys enact negligence upon themselves, a woman uses cosmetic surgery to find an identity, a middle-aged man is undone by the grief of unrequited love.

Special to this space is the ability to enter into the private, interior landscapes of each of the characters. These interior landscapes convey a compressed sense of the emotional states the characters are experiencing. Get too close to any of the characters and the spectator will be bumped into this interior life without warning. In this way, Eavesdrop is intended to work on three layers: the interior landscapes of the characters, their public narratives, and the engagement with the spectator through the simple interactive medium of zoom and pan functions on a platform-module that the user employs to navigate the space.

from icinema cofa

more info and video clips from not yet its difficult

Assisted by the Confederation of Australian International Arts Festivals through the Major Festivals Initiative of the Australia Council; the Australian Government's arts funding and advisory body, Melbourne International Arts Festival, Brisbane Festival and Sydney Festival

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