Interface 2.0: Our Collaboration with Catalyst Berlin.

Following the successful launch of our Interface project in 2020, we jumped at the chance to do it again – bringing together students from Catalyst Berlin and our very own students in Manchester. 

From dozens of applications, only four students from each institution were selected and then matched with a creative partner to collaborate with remotely over the course of 12 weeks. The partnerships were asked to create an audio/visual piece exploring the ever-relevant concept of Utopia / Dystopia – this year’s theme for Signal’s Festival in Berlin, where the winning piece of work will be showcased from 15-16 October.

The final projects were presented at a virtual listening session, where a panel of judges from both Catalyst Berlin and Spirit Studios reflected on the work and selected a winner: Oneiro-Hiraeth by Olívia Mamberti and Maya Rain. 

Check out all the students’ work below, and click their links to find out more about them.

WINNER: ‘Oneiro-Hiraeth’ 

Olívia Mamberti (Catalyst)
Maya Rain (Spirit Studios)

An audio-visual experience exploring the dichotomy between Utopia Vs Dystopia. The installation follows an immersive storyline, featuring Olívia’s stunning vocals and Maya’s sheer range of music production and sound design experience, while being perfectly complemented with colourful and dynamic visual experiences.

RUNNER UP: ‘An Apocalypse Humdrum of Long Dead Cetacea’

Eating Lights (Catalyst)
Copilot Claude (Spirit Studios)

An Apocalypse Humdrum Among Long-Dead Cetacea is an examination of whale fall and the “slow time” of the deep sea, in the form of a looping video with no beginning or end.

‘Scanning with My Eyes Closed’ by Purple Pizzazz 

Federico Corazzini (Catalyst)
David Pani (Spirit Studios)

An abstract video collage between two different realities that merge through the use of the internet. Incorporating VHS recording and analogue audio/video processing, the aim is to portray the contrast between a “pre-internet” reality and the current situation with social media.