In a rehearsal for a speech at IFFR Rotterdam Frieda Gustavs speaks about the nl12.lab VR in progress: THE MARCH. The March is a non lineair vr opera-without-words that deals with our relations and responsibilities with war, inequality, violence and social conflict. The experience is about culture and consequences of war in our society. Visitors will find themselves in the shoes of perpetrator, victim and passive spectator. War is close and we're part of it. 55 words The visual content of The March comes from our homes where we - consciously or unconsciously - keep the remnants of our history. In the Vr, in new arrangements, the photos and objects are to be re-discovered and re-interpent. In the virtual world objects, photos and other elements can merge, come together in a new visual language as a connecting factor. Using various variations on march music, we wander through the era 1860-2025 with metaphors about winners, losers and victims. The non-linear aspect of the immersive experience is the starting point. The experience is not a history or life lesson, but allows the visitor to make personal discoveries. It will be different for everyone. The visitor can independently, with the help of controllers, determine his route, walk up and down, turn around, stop frequently or travel faster through the experience. Along the way he makes personal choices that determine his experience and what he takes away from it. Because of the countless possibilities for connections and connections, there is more to discover than we have included. The March is above all a piece of music intertwined with a multitude of visual narratives. The virtual map is based on an exploration of sounds. The music also has a guiding function. Bell sounds play a central role in this. Bell and bell sounds reside deep in our subconscious. They can be innocently asking for attention, but can also be ominous. In the March, bell sounds politely ask for attention, they playfully lead you around, introduce march music and warn of 'danger'. The march music colors the subject differently and gives the visitor conflicting emotions. As the visitor moves through the virtual world, the music will gradually change. This gives the music a non-linear aspect, where the beginning and end are less important than the transition from one fragment to another. The visitor travels through eight different scenes, each focusing on a different aspect of war culture: racism, colonialism and the damage and trauma it leaves behind, looting and kidnapping of artifacts, violence, pride, but also poverty and destruction.
