PROMPT-SET-PERFORM — WORKSHOP
CIPRIAN FĂCĂERU & TEAM
23 October 2025, 18:00-19:30
24-25-26 October 2025, 15:30-18:30
Location: CAVE Lab @ CINETIC UNATC (3-b Tudor Arghezi Street Bucharest)
PROMPT-SET-PERFORM
AI–XR PERFORMATIVE EXPERIMENTS IN CAVE SYSTEMS
Abstract
The PROMPT-SET-PERFORM Workshop is a 4-day interdisciplinary hands-on event exploring the integration of generative artificial intelligence (AI) within virtual reality (VR) scenographic and performance art practices, hosted in the CAVE laboratory at UNATC Bucharest. The workshop explores, demonstrates and evaluates a methodological framework developed through the research project PROMPTSCENIUM – Methodological Framework for Generative AI-Driven XR Scenography in CAVE Systems.
Participants will engage in guided sessions combining theory, demonstration, and practical exercises across film, theatre, and new media contexts. The workshop introduces workflows for AI-assisted virtual scenography, real-time performance environments, and participatory XR installations. Activities include live demonstrations of AI-assisted virtual reality production, AI-performer interaction in immersive CAVE environments, focus-group discussions on the artistic, technical, and ethical implications of AI-driven creation.
The workshop targets at least 10 participants (students, PhD candidates and artists) from diverse backgrounds, fostering transdisciplinary collaboration and knowledge exchange. By collecting both technical performance data and qualitative feedback, the event contributes to validating the AI–XR methodology and informs subsequent artistic prototypes developed within the project.
Ultimately, the PROMPT-SET-PERFORM Workshop aims to advance understanding of how AI and XR technologies can ethically and creatively augment performance art environments and practices. It provides participants with methodological tools and processes, practical skills, and critical perspectives that support future research and artistic productions.
Description
The PROMPT-SET-PERFORM Workshop is an interdisciplinary, three-day laboratory dedicated to demonstrating, experimenting, and evaluating AI–XR creative workflows within immersive scenography and performance contexts. Hosted at the UNATC CAVE Lab, the workshop invites a maximum of 15 participants — students, PhD candidates, faculty members, and artists — from across artistic and technological disciplines.
An open call launched at the end of September will select participants and potential artistic collaborators, ensuring a diverse group with complementary expertise in theatre, film, media arts, computer science, and design. The workshop aims to foster hands-on experimentation, critical dialogue, collaborative prototyping, and public presentation at the intersection of generative artificial intelligence and extended reality (XR) systems.
The workshop will focus on three creative vectors, each addressing a distinct form of AI-driven artistic production:
Short Film (3–5 minutes) – prototyping and producing AI-assisted virtual sets and visual effects in a virtual cinematography context.
Objectives
To introduce and demonstrate AI–XR workflows developed in the PROMPTSCENIUM research project.
To provide participants with practical, hands-on experience at the convergence of performing arts and immersive installations.
To evaluate the pedagogical, creative, and ethical implications of integrating generative AI in performance and visual arts.
To identify and select student and doctoral collaborators for further artistic prototyping within the project.
To disseminate results and insights through a final presentation and discussion.
Live XR Performance – integrating generative scenography in real time, exploring actor–virtual environment interactions mediated by AI.
Interactive Installation – designing an immersive virtual environment responsive to participant or collective audience input, investigating AI-mediated interactivity and participatory scenography.
Technological Context
Planned Activities
Day 1 – Introduction and Demonstration
Opening presentation: overview of the PROMPTSCENIUM framework and AI–XR methodology.
Guided demonstration of AI-assisted scenographic pipelines in CAVE environments.
Hands-on session: participants experiment with film/theatre/new-media scenarios using provided AI–XR tools.
Group reflection: initial impressions, challenges, and creative opportunities.
Day 2 & Day 3 – Collaboration and Evaluation
Interactive session: real-time performer–AI–XR interactions.
Small group exercises: interdisciplinary teams sketch micro-prototypes for scenographic or performative applications.
Focus-group discussions: pedagogical, technical, and creative implications of AI in immersive performance contexts.
Feedback and evaluation: collection of data, participant surveys, and group debriefing.
Selection of collaborators: identification of students/doctoral participants for subsequent artistic prototypes.
Day 4 – Presentation and Reflection
Showcase of group-developed micro-prototypes and experimental outcomes in the CAVE Lab.
Public presentation for an invited audience (students, faculty, and external guests).
Facilitated dialogue between participants and audience, emphasizing artistic, technical, and ethical perspectives.
Closing session: synthesis of key findings, documentation of feedback, and identification of next research/creation steps.
Expected Outcomes
Increased participant knowledge of AI-driven XR methodologies and tools.
Documentation of feedback and performance data to inform methodological validation.
Formation of a collaborative team of student and doctoral researchers to continue prototyping.
Public presentation of workshop results, enhancing dissemination and institutional visibility.
A shared critical understanding of the role of AI–XR in the evolution of scenography and performance arts.
Ciprian Făcăeru is an XR designer, media artist and creative technologist, co-founder of Augmented Space Agency and assistant-researcher at UNATC. His work blends design, performing arts and emergent media technologies, focusing on interactive virtual environments and XR installations.
The PROMPT-SET-PERFORM Workshop is facilitated by a multidisciplinary team of UNATC research and teaching personnel and collaborators, part of the research pilot PROPTSCENIUM financed through the UNATC FFCSU program.
Workshop Facilitators
Alexandra Sofonea is a research associate at CINETic, UNATC, holding a PhD in cognitive sciences. Her academic work investigates spontaneous thought, EEG microstates, and media cognition, bridging neuroscience and digital media studies.
Alexandru Baltă is a writer, director, and game designer professor at UNATC. A PhD degree in Game Design, he explores games as a contemporary Gesamtkunstwerk while also producing film and interactive projects.
Dragoș-Ion Dogioiu is a new media artist and XR designer whose practice spans animation, VR, and digital installations. He has exhibited internationally, including Ars Electronica and Boulevart Dubai, exploring experimental digital storytelling.
Technology Assistants
Marius Hodea is a virtual reality designer and assistant technician at UNATC, specializing in VR, immersive environments, and 360° cinema. He has contributed to projects like the Virtual Callatis Museum and workshops linking film, dance, and technology.
Sabin Șerban is an XR developer and designer with a background in architecture. He collaborates with Augmented Space Agency on immersive projects, creating interactive virtual spaces and experimental installations.
Dan Făcăeru is a creative technologist and XR developer at Augmented Space Agency, engaged in building immersive and interactive installations. He works on VR/AR performance technologies, blending live art with digital environments.
Virgil Bugnariu is a software engineer and multidisciplinary artist combining coding with visual arts, music, and interactive media. His projects span digital installations, experimental sound, and film collaborations in Romania and abroad.
The workshop is part of the the second edition of the AI in Art Practices and Research international conference, organized by UNATC in Bucharest from 23–26 October 2025. The event explores the impact of AI on artistic creation and research, as well as its broader applications in society, such as accessibility, healthcare and well-being.