Deepen your VR skills and get support from professional instructors and peer artists.

Finnish Animation Guild and MUU ry will organize a week-long VR workshop for their members in autumn 2023. The course participants are selected through an open project call. The workshop aims to deepen VR skills for artists who already have a preliminary or advanced project idea in which they want to incorporate VR technology. We expect the applicant to have some experience in digital design.

The workshop’s goal is to create a dialogue between different types of art, support artists in various fields to utilize VR technology, and create new high-level VR art.

We select 3 to 6 artists or artist groups for the workshop period. Before the workshop week starts at MUU Helsinki contemporary art centre, there will be one remote meeting where course participants receive already advice on their project ideas. During the workshop, artists work on their projects, receive guidance and support from instructors, and receive peer evaluation from other course participants.

We plan to have a VR exhibition at the MUU contemporary art centre’s fall program 2024, where all participant projects can display their ready artworks. 

Apply to the workshop by filling out this form!

Project schedule *

May 31, 2023

the open call begins!

August 15, 6 pm

Open call ends.
The Jury will select the participating projects for the workshop.

August 22

The selected artists or groups are informed by email

September 12 from 5 to 7 pm (remotely)
The 1st info meeting for selected artists and teachers

November 21. – 26. 2023 (every day about 10 am – 5 pm) 

VR workshop week takes place in Helsinki at the MUU contemporary art centre (Cabel Factory, Kaapelitehdas)

Autumn 2024 (end of August)

The plan is to display all the selected workshop projects in a VR exhibition at the MUU contemporary art centre autumn 2024. The plan is tentative as we are still applying for additional funding. (tentative schedule is 31.8.-8.9.2024)
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We hope all applicants can commit to the schedule above (however, possible exhibition dates are still uncertain)

Workshop instructors & organisers 

Leena Jääskeläinen is a Helsinki-based media artist, animation film director and screenwriter. She is currently working on a VR documentary project Making Art In My Dreams. Her and Kaisa Penttilä’s first feature animation film called Bear Park is in the development stage. They are also writing their second feature script under the working title The Family Reunion Of The Ordinary. Jääskeläinen and Penttilä’s anarchist drawn series Boris The Råt Mends His Ways is currently celebrating its tenth anniversary. In virtual reality, Leena is primarily fascinated by complete immersion and concentration. 

www.leenajaaskelainen.fi

Albert Laine is a Finnish artist, educator and organizer with decades of experience in arts and media. Laine works in the fields of cinema, media art and fine Art. His work varies from studio television ads to artistic auteur work. He was the producer of the Animatricks International Animation Festival for four years. Albert is the current Chairman of the Finnish Animators Guild and a member of the National Council for Audiovisual Art: Cinema and Media Art.

Kristina Laine is a multidisciplinary artist working in the fields of media art, animation and VR. She holds a Masters’s degree in Environmental Art from Aalto University. Her art practice addresses communities and promotes learning and diversity. In her work, Kristina focuses mainly on narrative visual imagery that can convey to the audience through animated films, theatre and VR experiences.

Finnish Animation Guild

The Finnish Animation Guild is the only national association for Finnish animation professionals. Guild’s goal is to gather people working in the animation field and support their professional identity, skills, and status in society. The association strives to support animation as an independent art form.

Artists’ Association MUU 

Founded in 1987, the Artists’ Association MUU is a national interdisciplinary art organisation representing professional artists working with new and non-traditional mediums. MUU aims to support working conditions, education, training and networking of artists. Among over 700 members, there are for instance artists working with media, performance, installation, sound, conceptual, environmental and community art. Association’s exhibition and project room MUU Helsinki contemporary art centre is located in the Cable factory. 

More info:
Anna Suonsyrjä, producer MUU ry
producer@muu.fi

Mika Koskinen, executive director Finnish Animation Guild
info@animaatiokilta.fi