Late Shift

“In the best case the viewers learn something about themselves when they watch a movie. They are touched, moved, inspired - challenged in their feelings and mindsets. That is the kind of cinema that I appreciate, and that is the kind of film that I want to make. Games fascinate me because they allow the player to do something they cannot do in real life. While it may seem legitimate to try out violence inside a game where there is no harm for any third party I think there is still a problem with violent games.
It is true that the world’s render engines create nowadays are near photorealistic, but game characters none the less remain abstract digital puppets. This means that also violence or the act of killing becomes abstract and seemingly insignificant. In games it’s not human beings who lose their lives, it’s just human-like targets that get shot down. Thus, there’s no way to gain the insight that violence is the wrong approach to problem solving.
Film continues to be a more subtle medium when it comes to exploring humans and humanity, at the same time it can be used to show brutality and its full consequence - but until now, all this has been without participation. The audience in the cinema remains passive, does not take action and is consequently never responsible for what happens on the screen.
‘Late Shift’ will change this. The film will make the audience discharge their duties, will let the audience make a difference in the story’s unfolding. It shall be up to the audience to choose the power of words or to fight back, to forgive or to choose brutal revenge. Neither the film nor the authors aim to judge the audience’s choices. The interactive format is extremely well suited for confronting the audience with the consequences of their thoughts and actions, to move them and to invite them reflect about choices. That is the meaning of the project.”