How am I here?!
Years after the Syrian diaspora, many Syrians are experiencing restless feelings about homecoming, wondering if it is the expected desire or another nightmare.
Mey Seifan muses these feelings in her transmedial performance How am I here?! Using documented late-night dreams that express anxiety about homecoming, she explores collective trauma and anxious homecoming through an audio-visual immersive journey that has been realised with Slow Future Studio and other international, multidisciplinary team members.
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Mey SeifanDirector
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Tanween collectiveDirector
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slowfutureDirector
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Tanween CompanyProducer
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Gizem AkmanKey Cast
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Beatrix KroschewskiKey Cast
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Amr KarkoutKey Cast
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Sonya LevinKey Cast
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Teresa Maria SimeoniKey Cast
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Layal SeifanKey Cast
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Slow FutureKey Collaborators
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Ziad AdwanLead ArtistsDramaturgy & Text Consultant
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Basel NaouriLead ArtistsExecutive creative director / Sound Designer
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Riccardo TorresiLead ArtistsVisual / VR environment artist
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Sohrab SamsamLead ArtistsVisual / VR environment artist
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Shadi AliLead ArtistsNarrato
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Layal SeifanLead ArtistsProduction Management
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Mert AkbalLead ArtistsCognitive artist
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Mouna AssaliLead ArtistsGreen-Screen footage
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Eric HillenbrandLead ArtistsDirector of Photography
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Harshini J. KarunaratneLead ArtistsInfrared footage
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Ahmed El ShaerLead Artists“Tank Dream” generative visuals
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Mey SeifanLead ArtistsConcept and Choreography
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Project Title (Original Language):كيف أنا هون؟
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Project Type:Virtual Reality, Performance, Installation, 360 Video, Augmented Reality
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Minimum Runtime:10 minutes
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Maximum Runtime:20 minutes
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Average Runtime:20 minutes
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Variable Runtime Details:The project unfolds within a VR space, featuring numerous rooms and immersive environments for exploration. The audience has the freedom to engage with the experience at their own pace. we recommend a duration of around 20 minutes. However, we can also accommodate flexibility in timing to meet specific preferences.Furthermore, we offer the option of an installation within the physical space where the VR experience is available. In this installation, we provide continuous video screenings, allowing viewers to enjoy the content for as long as they desire. This serves the dual purpose of creating a welcoming atmosphere for the audience and offering an alternative for those who may experience discomfort with VR and prefer a 2D viewing experience.
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Completion Date:October 6, 2023
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Production Budget:80,000 EUR
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Country of Origin:Germany
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Language:Arabic, English
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Student Project:No
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JUBILÄUMSVERANSTALTUNG 100 JAHRE, 100 STUNDEN, FLUGHAFEN TEMPELHOFBerlin
Germany
October 6, 2023
world premier -
D-CAF Festival (Egypt)Cairo
Egypt
November 2, 2023
Arab world premier
Distribution Information
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Tanween companyDistributorCountry: GermanyRights: All Rights
Mey is a choreographer, curator, and Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion (DEI) expert known for her pioneering contributions to the contemporary dance scene in the Arab world. She has consistently explored social and political themes and their impact on individuals.
After the Arab Spring in 2011, Mey shifted her focus to explore dreams, the absurdities of everyday life in times of emergency, collective traumas, and PTSD. The "Dreams Archive," initiated in 2011 by her, serves as the foundation for her subsequent projects, including the trilogy "Destruction for Beginners," the installation and performance "SIESTA," and the participative performance experiment "Reality Check." Since 2020, Mey has expanded her artistic scope to include digital performances.
Mey began her artistic journey at the Ballet Conservatory in Damascus in 1987. She is an alumna of HfMDK Frankfurt and studied Theater Studies at LMU in Munich. As an expert in the Arab contemporary performing arts scene, she actively advocates for diversity policies in the German cultural sphere.
In Berlin, Mey serves as a board member of the State Association of Independent Performing Arts LAFT and is a member of the "Access and Transformation" working group of the Federal Association of Independent Performing Arts (BFDK). Mey has also acted as a supervisor for the PERFORMING ARTS COLLECTIVES program at UDK Berlin and frequently participates as a jury member and panelist in various organizations.
Mey has conceptualized and curated numerous cultural events, including the "Damascus Contemporary Dance Platform" at the Damascus Opera, and the symposium "POSITIONS:DANCE#4 Creating Access #Diversity/Deutscher Tanzpreis". she is also an activist in political-feminist circles.
Tanween is a theatre and performance collective, its projects include performances, academic work, activism and cultural politics between Europe and the Middle East.
www.tanween.de
Slowfuture, a concept developed by Basel Naouri, is a Berlin-based multidisciplinary alternative studio and laboratory for transmedia storytelling and interactive architectural installations. www.slowfuture.org
When home becomes a nightmare, where to escape? Should the dreamers wake up or should they stay on the train?