On the 23d October 2013 we were invited with Cédric Parizot, anthropologist, specializing in the study of the border between Cisjordany and Israel and Douglas Edric Stanley, artist and in charge of the Hypermedia workshop at the Superior art school of Aix-en-Provence to introduce A crossing industry during En-jeux des images, a conference organized by Yannick Vernet for Obsin. A crossing industry is a game that is developped by the Hypermedia workshop students from the data collected by Cédric Parizot on the border. It deals with all the papers traffic ans shows how complex is the situation at the border and how a same person can be a victim as well as an exectutioner. This game is being developped in the frame of the antiAtlas of borders as a trans disciplinary project between art and social sciences. It will be exhibited for the first time at la compagnie in Marseille for the second part of the antiAtlas of borders from 13 december 2013 to 1st march 2014. The presentation of the game during the Obsin conference was also the first public presentation of the project and gave us the occasion to get some positive feedbacks on the project.
During the afternoon, we had several other presentations and at the end of the day, Paul Sztulman who teaches at ENSAD in Paris, made an “amazment report” as a summup of the day. Apart the fact that he made me laugh a lot, he also talked about the relationship between the french garden history and video and computer games. How the deambulation in the garden with the help of a mirror can be linked to paths and mazes in games. I really need to read his text written for the Artpress 2 on games.
The day after, there was some other talks but I kept something in mind, said by Etienne Armand Amato: in the study of images and games, we should keep in mind other visions of the world, like totemism, animism, naturalism, etc… It made me think forward and I will keep this in mind for the next texts I will write…
In the afternoon, I drove a machinima workshop in front of a very different kinf of audiences, which was great. There was the directors of 2 schools: Supinfocom and the ESAix, but also students from ESAix, from the Technology Institute of Arles and also in front of adults, working in the field of social action or image education. I began to tell the story of machinima, then I showed different kinf of machinimas and ended my speach by showing how artists divert machinima as a new tool to express themselves. Then I showed different technics of machinima making: using the video editor of GTA, Moviestorm and of course how to use FRAPS to record some gameplay using independant games like Dear Esther or Proteus.
Finally this wunderful day ended with a great news: we had a dinner with Margherita Balzerani and decided to write a book together dealing with art and games. Stay tuned!!
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