The International Center for Research and Education in Innovative Creative Technologies (CINETic), within UNATC “I.L. Caragiale”, launched the CINETic Residencies 2020, an international digital arts residency program dedicated to innovation at the intersection of art, science, and technology. Focused on VR, AR, MR, animation, interactive installations, sound design, game design, and new media, the program offers artists, designers, programmers, and researchers access to advanced creative technologies, mentorship, and production support within the CINETic research center in Bucharest. The residencies culminate in public presentations during the annual CINETic Art–Technology–Research Conference, showcasing interdisciplinary projects and emerging practices in digital and immersive arts.
CINETic RESIDENCIES 2020 is a pilot program of the International Center for Research and Education in Innovative Creative Technologies (CINETic) through which UNATC “I.L. Caragiale” will, for the first time, organize creative residencies within the center.
Since its launch in 2015, CINETic has become a landmark in production, innovation, and development at the intersection of ART, SCIENCE, and TECHNOLOGY. From its foundation, the goal of CINETic has been to democratize access to state-of-the-art technological resources for artists, resources that are often prohibitively expensive. Through securing funding of approximately 8 million euros in 2014, UNATC succeeded in creating an unprecedented material and technological infrastructure in the field of digital interaction. The expertise and equipment available within the center are accessible to UNATC students as well as institutional collaborations focused on research and the innovative use of technology.
Through the CINETic RESIDENCIES, our aim is to open access for artists working in the field of digital arts (VR, AR, MR, animation, interactive installations, expanded cinema, sound design, game design) to the experts and technology of the CINETic center. The residencies will be open nationally and internationally (two dedicated to Romanian creators and two open internationally).
Each residency is scheduled for a duration of 50 days, giving selected creators the opportunity to develop a project within CINETic while benefiting from the center’s technology and expertise.
Specifically, CINETic will provide:
- Space and infrastructure for carrying out the creative residency;
- Shared workspaces for collaboration alongside CINETic researchers and technicians;
- State-of-the-art equipment for video and sound post-production, animation, VR/AR/MR, motion capture, CNC router, 3D printer, filming equipment, graphics workstations with dedicated software, etc.;
- Mentorship from CINETic researchers, who will facilitate the exploratory creative process;
- Actual production and implementation of the proposed residency project;
- Presentation of the final projects, installations, or residency outcomes during the annual conference organized by CINETic in November, dedicated to the intersection of art, technology, and research;
- The possibility to continue conceptual explorations and prototype implementation even after the residency program has ended.
The residencies are open to creators from all cultural backgrounds and areas of expertise, ranging from visual artists to designers, architects, programmers, engineers, writers, musicians, composers, photographers, videographers, and artists developing practices within the field of digital arts. The CINETic RESIDENCIES are intended to be both a space and a shared timeframe for art and technology alike.
The four residencies will enable an exchange of expertise and ideas between the selected creators from the national (2) and international (2) cultural scenes and the existing CINETic research community, already formed around the concept of interdisciplinarity, with expertise in cinematography, virtual reality, visual design, sound design, augmented reality, game design, interactive technologies, new media, animation, art therapy, applied psychology, cognitive development, and more.
The results of these four residencies will be publicly presented at the most important annual event organized by CINETic — the CINETic Art-Technology-Research Conference, which in 2020 will reach its 4th edition. Previous editions brought together more than 300 students, professors, researchers, and members of the public interested in these emerging transdisciplinary fields:
- 2017 — National Conference “Theatre and Interdisciplinarity”
- 2018 — National Conference “Art and Technology in Contemporary Culture”
- 2019 — International Conference “Augmenting Performance”
For 2020, alongside the presentation sessions of the annual CINETic Conference, we also aim to organize a showcase section that will include the center’s own projects, student projects, and the outcomes of the CINETic RESIDENCIES, with both national and international exposure, allowing scientific and communication-oriented results to be supported through practical examples drawn from the exhibited works.