Soviet Unterzoegersdorf
Soviet Unterzoegersdorf (German: Sowjet-Unterzögersdorf) is a fictitious country created by the art/technology/theory group monochrom. It is the "last existing appanage republic of the USSR", located inside the Republic of Austria. Unterzögersdorf is partially based on an existing village[1] well-known to Johannes Grenzfurthner, the creator of the concept.
Debates triggered by postmodern culture have directed monochrom's attention towards questions of representation and relevance of "history" and stories. With Soviet Unterzoegersdorf a fictitious and misplaced handling of the past and the present is being discussed and put to use. In this regard, the project is also taking part in the production as well as the criticism of cultural and collective memories.
Monochrom transformed the basic theoretical concept into various projects (LARPs, computer games, short films, performances).
Contents
Short film (1999)
A short film ("Der Installateur (bis 14:28)") about a plumber trying to cross the border of Soviet Unterzoegersdorf to repair a nuclear warm-water boiler.
Public theatre performances (2001 and 2002)
In 2001, ten years after the end of the Soviet Union, monochrom transformed the theoretical concept into an improvisational theatre/performance/LARP that lasted for a couple of days. They organized bus tours from Vienna to Unterzoegersdorf—a small Lower Austrian village that really exists—and acted the setting; beginning with the harsh EU Schengen border control.
In 2002 they staged the 55th anniversary of the Communist Party of Soviet Unterzoegersdorf. Among other things monochrom presented a computer called “Hyper Hegel” that was powered with burning wood and that would only run a low tech version of Tetris. Later “Hyper Hegel” was presented as an art installation in exhibitions.
Computer Game Series (2005-)
| Soviet Unterzoegersdorf | |
|---|---|
| File:Soviet Unterzoegersdorf Sector 2 -- game cover.jpg
Game cover of "Soviet Unterzoegersdorf / Sector 2
|
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| Developer(s) | monochrom |
| Engine | Adventure Game Studio (AGS) |
| Platforms | Windows, Mac OS X, Linux |
| Genre(s) | Adventure |
- Soviet Unterzoegersdorf: Sector I
In 2005 monochrom presented the first part of a computer game trilogy: "Soviet Unterzoegersdorf - The Adventure Game" (using AGS). To monochrom it was clear that the adventure game would provide the perfect media platform to communicate the idea of Soviet Unterzoegersdorf.
The first part of the game was very popular and was well received in the media.[2] The game magazine Edge chose the game as their 'internet game of the month' of November 2005.[3] The back story of the adventure game series features the really existing Tumulus of Unterzoegersdorf.
- Soviet Unterzoegersdorf: Sector II
Soviet Unterzoegersdorf: Sector II has been presented on December 28, 2008 at the 25th Chaos Communication Congress in Berlin. The game features special guest appearances of Cory Doctorow, Bruce Sterling, Jello Biafra, Jason Scott, Bre Pettis and MC Frontalot. The game was released in March 2009 in San Francisco.
Interventions (2008-)
In 2008 monochrom staged a couple of public appearances of "His Excellency Ambassador of Soviet Unterzoegersdorf, Nikita Chrusov" in the USA. The "Ambassador" (played by monochrom member Johannes Grenzfurthner) visited a corporate afterparty of Disney.com at the Marriott Hotel in San Diego (part of O'Reilly Emerging Technology Conference). He wanted to talk to executives about "the sugar-coated bullets" the corporation is firing at "his country" and other concepts of "cultural imperialism". The "Ambassador" got expelled from the party by Disney personnel.
On September 11, 2009 the "Soviet Unterzoegersdorf Intelligence Corps" released a press statement referring to a pretty detailed list of Austrian civilian and military air traffic frequencies and recordings of two embarrassing conversations on Austrian police radio.
Sierra Zulu (2011-)
monochrom announced on September 12, 2011 that they are working on a feature-length film that is set in the universe of Soviet Unterzoegersdorf. They are collaborating with the Austrian film production company Golden Girls Filmproduktion. Johannes Grenzfurthner gave a presentation at TEDxVienna about the project.
On February 4, 2012 monochrom and Golden Girls Filmproduktion premiered the 16-minute short film "Earthmoving". It is a prequel to the feature film Sierra Zulu and features actors Jeff Ricketts, Martin Auer, Lynsey Thurgar, Adrienne Ferguson and Alexander Fennon.
Side projects
monochrom created an acclaimed series of video spots for Boing Boing Video, dealing with a mysterious packages full of Cheetos. The series is set in the alternative universe of Soviet Unterzoegersdorf.[4][5][6][7]
Media references
- Interview with Johannes Grenzfurthner (monochrom) about 'Soviet Unterzoegersdorf'
- Socialismo, era tutto un gioco?
- Review, The Underdogs
- Neural: Soviet-Unterzögersdorf
- Boing Boing TV
- Analysis of Soviet Unterzoegersdorf's Cheetos campaign
- ↑ so2/rhizomatic architecture, 2009
- ↑ Un saut chez les Soviets, in: Libération (by Marie Lechner), April 28, 2006
- ↑ The Edge, Internet Game of the Month, November 2005
- ↑ Frito-Lay Puts Cheetos Brand in Bloggers' Hands, in "Ad Age", Michael Learmonth; February 11, 2009
- ↑ Tom Cunniff/iCPG, 2009
- ↑ PSFK Agency, 2009
- ↑ Chas Edwards' blog, 2009
External links
- unterzoegersdorf.su (.su is the top level domain that was assigned to the Soviet Union)
- Project page
- Game page
- Soviet Unterzoegersdorf Metroblogging
- Summary of a talk about Soviet Unterzoegersdorf (dealing with the background of the project)
- "Sierra Zulu" / feature film project page
- "Earthmoving" - a Sierra Zulu prequel on IMDb
