2062: the near future

How will the earth look in 50 years’ time? From Bladerunner to The War of the Worlds, to Men in Black, international cinema often seems to think we have the bleak choice between a future of human persecution of either the android or alien variety. Looking back 50 years to 1962, Europe had recently come out of the post war Depression and had all the joy and frolickery of the 60’s to look forward to. Can music, art and society really change all that much so soon, perhaps for the better? Either way, technology is sure to remain at the forefront of cultural development.  

Tron-inspired Experience at Marshmallow Laser Feast (UK, 2011)

Although it might be a bit ambitious to suggest this is the future of film entertainment, it certainly raises the bar where the personal living room experience of watching a film is concerned. PlayStation commissioned 3 films and experiences based on classic movies from new UK collective Marshmallow Laser Feast, a group of well-respected UK directors and VJs, including Flat-E, Mehmet Akten and Barney Steel. The result is an impressive and original take on projection mapping, where the room itself is animated to create a live 360-surround 3D experience. It is almost as much fun to spot the antics of the background actors in their white all-in-one morph suits as it is to watch the film itself. 

More videos : Transformers or Pirates of the Caribbean

Kyle Macdonald  – Face Substitution (USA,2011)

The future of Facebook? Macdonald has a created an app which can morph your own webcam image into that of your favourite Hollywood celebrity. From Marilyn Monroe and Michael Jackson (eerily lifelike) to Brad Pitt and Mao Tse Tung (less obvious) the results are in real time and are truly thought provoking, inciting questions about our own identities and the potential to exchange one for another. As Macdonald writes, ‘maybe in the distant future we will be as comfortable sharing our identity as we are sharing various consumable resources’. 

Eness – Möbius (Australia, 2011)

What should the architecture of the future look like? Will buildings be as beautifully designed, perhaps sculptural, as much as they are both functional and comfortable for their inhabitants? This mobile, interactive architectural sculpture was created in Melbourne over 2 weeks. A simple idea, the snake of consecutive triangles can be moved then animated via time lapse photography in different city locations. But what a nice idea to have public art which can travel around the city, moving on to new locations when familiarity means the audience no longer notices it! A great way to re-use and re-present art to new audiences.

Earth | Time Lapse View from Space, Fly Over | NASA, ISS – Michael Koenig ( USA, 2011)

According to the Simpsons, the 5th Element and the World Future Society in the future we shall all be taking our holidays in outer-space. The latter predict there will be 13,000 sub-orbital space tourists annually by 2021, never mind 2050. As this becomes a reality for the wealthy few stargazers who signed up to Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, it is refreshing for those of us whose budget stretches to a 2 week camping trip, to understand the sightseeing possibilities of astro-tourism. Koenig created this remarkable film from publically-available photo footage shot from the International Space Station, which orbits about 350km above our heads. It is literally stunning to see from space the green streaks of light of the Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australis, the tiny explosions of light which indicate lightning storms, and the small pockets of dots, which indicate city lights at night time.