On the Spot

On the Spot is an interactive video installation that transforms the audience from passive spectators into active creators. During a performance, audience members use their own mobile devices to capture moments that resonate with them. These individual recordings are then uploaded to a local server through a custom web application, where they are automatically processed and appended to a collective video document of the event.

The installation includes a real-time display showing the evolving composite video as new clips are contributed. Each addition creates a new perspective, building a multi-faceted documentation of the performance that represents the collective gaze of the audience rather than a single directorial viewpoint.

The project explores themes of collective memory, democratized documentation, and the changing relationship between performers and audiences in an era of ubiquitous mobile recording devices. Rather than discouraging the use of phones during performances (as is traditional), On the Spot embraces and channels this behavior into a collaborative creative process.

On the Spot was exhibited at CineDans 2019 at the EYE Museum in Amsterdam, where it documented several dance performances through the perspectives of hundreds of audience members.

Performers: Ischa Statie & Jill Kupers