Futures_Past: Open Call for Applications from Immersive Artist Teams
Futures_Past: Amplifying Memory with Immersive Technologies is a groundbreaking initiative bringing together the Embassy of France in South Africa, Lesotho, and Malawi, the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS), and Electric South to reimagine the future of heritage through cutting-edge immersive arts. The project aims to empower archival and cultural institutions to reach new audiences by transforming archival collections into compelling public experiences using technologies such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), spatial and 3D audio, interactive environments, and hybrid digital installations.
The programme supports artist teams comprising directors, producers, technologists, and emerging assistant producers—who will collaboratively develop six distinctive digital storytelling projects rooted in the region’s photographic, sonic, historical, and cultural archives. By partnering with South Africa, Lesotho, and Malawi’s leading archival and museum institutions, teams will use creative formats to interpret histories and ignite dialogue on cultural memory, identity, human rights, and resilience.
Each selected team receives significant production funding (R500,000–R1,200,000) to bring their vision to life, gain access to expert mentorship and technical resources, and participate in a mobility and networking programme in France. Additional training and capacity building, especially for a new generation of assistant producers, ensures sectoral growth and sustainability. The initiative also emphasizes cross-cultural exchange, professional development, and the public exhibition of completed immersive artworks in museums and public venues, facilitating powerful new encounters with heritage.
Proposals must go beyond traditional media to unlock the experiential potential of archives using immersive storytelling, ensuring the resulting works are interactive, portable, and positioned to travel within and beyond the region. The project actively advances collaboration, ethical representation, innovation, and engagement with diverse audiences, while strengthening the immersive digital arts sector in Southern Africa.
Who Can Apply:
Eligible teams must consist of at least four key roles: a director (must be from or resident in the archive’s country), technologist, producer, and an emerging trainee assistant producer under age 30. Directors must be able to travel to the country/city where the archive is based. Other team members can be from anywhere in Africa. All key roles require three years’ experience (except the trainee). Teams should demonstrate technical, creative, and collaborative capacity. Gender-balanced teams are encouraged but not required; openness, ethics, originality, and audience engagement are key criteria.
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Apply here.