Frankenstein ai
An immersive installation and dance performance exploring bias in how we create and train the “monster” that is artificial intelligence
Lead Artists: Lance Weiler, Rachel Ginsburg, Nick Fortugno,
Key Collaborator, Producer, Choreographer: Brandon Powers
Produced by Columbia University Digital Storytelling Lab
Inspired by the 200th anniversary of Shelley’s seminal text, this participatory installation explores our relationship to artificial intelligence and algorithmic bias. I crafted a performance which expressed our AI inhabiting a human body to communicate with the audience. The human dancer performed choreography which was created using a new choreographic notation I invented to deconstruct movement and mirror the machine learning process. During the performance, this choreography was manipulated by our AI in real time based on how the audience responded to the AI's prompted questions, thus creating a unique live experience.
Process
Explore the process behind building this project for Sundance.
BREAKDOWN
A 5-minute exploration of the AI-powered choreography featured in the live performance.
press
“One of my favorite parts of Sundance’s New Frontier lineup”
— Adi robertson,
the verge
“The set pieces include a dimly lit room where red velvet chairs ring tables outfitted with touchscreens that resemble a Ouija board married to an iPad; a dance performance of “algorithmic choreography” that mimics the process of machine learning; and the physical manifestation of the monster itself: a large plexiglass tank filled with smoke and abstract visualizations of code and projections of bits of imagery culled from the internet.”