History
Selfcontrolfreak (Olivier Otten) is a Dutch independent multimedia designer who’s also active within the Holland-Interactive Collective. He was co-founder of multimedia studio Toxit, which he worked with for ten years. He is VJ for Major League teaches at Willem de Kooning Art Academy in Rotterdam. A selection of projects he was involved in include: VPRO’s 3voor12’s Viewmaster, Villa Achterwerk’s (On)geloofstest and Visual-power.com.
Projects
SelfControlFreak
One of Otten’s most popular works is titled “Self Control Freak”. According to Otten, the site “shows his research project; exploring the possibilities of interaction design in combination with a video.” He goes on to explain that usually if you’re watching a video online as a spectator you have no role (passive third person). However, in this project the visitor plays an active role and becomes first person. “Who is in control of who? Are visitors responsible in the way they act e.g. by mouse movement, clicks and dragging?” asks Otten. The visitor is able to directly influence the videos and trigger various emotions and behaviors. Since early 2009 the series has resulted in 21 (and counting) interactive videos.
A typical Selfcontrolfreak video begins with Otten framed against a white wall anxiously waiting to comply to the visitors commands. #11 for instance, is a zoom-in of this scenario. As the cursor moves over Otten’s face, specific features react. Pointing to an eye provokes a wink. Passing over his mouth elicits a smile or frown ... on and on the options go. Each video invites a moment of focused attention, a hand-eye riddle and invariably, amusing trial and error.
When this lab rat stimulus and response appears to wear out and the visitors attention begins to fade, the real surprises, intrigues and conceptual depth emerges as Otten bites back--literally. Bring your cursor too close to Otten’s face in video #2 and he’ll lunge forward to aggressively seize, chew and spit it back out. The link between the viewers hand and the virtual icon becomes included in the story; slide your mouse left or right and Otten’s head follows. Click and he spits out the cursor. Again, Otten explores variations of this theme.
Despite the seemingly repetitive and limited reactions, each scenario is refreshingly unexpected. Part of what makes Otten’s work so unique and valuable is that he replaces passive conventions with participation. Combining the playfulness of YouTube with the hyperactivity of hyperlinking, Otten successfully erases the Internet’s “fourth wall.” As Otten suggests, exactly who is in control appears open to negotiation--the ultimate answer perhaps being the actor who exerts a greater desire for self-control.
Ultimately, Selfcontrolfreak is a self-reflexive look at media and the theatrics of identity. It draws forth a question of influence. The viewer is free to move their cursor anywhere on the page, but the consequential outcomes are programmed and determined. Otten’s simple actions work to remind us that the proclaimed freedom of the web is actually controlled and coded.
Masterpiece 2.0
Recently, Oliver Otten collaborated with Baschz (a co-founder and curator of cultural breeding ground and exhibition space SingerSweatShop, Rotterdam), to create the first ever unique painting made with a Web 2.0 approach. The canvas interacts with its visitors who, (similar to Selfcontrolfreak) can affect the process and final outcome of this authentic piece.
Throughout the summer and fall of 2009 a multilayered canvas and animation was created which could be influenced and followed by website visitors online 24 hours a day. Each sent in suggestion was represented through animated interactions as they were painted layer-by-layer into the growing animated canvas by Baschz. Every new layer was photographed separately and together with the others, creating the stop motion animating canvas, (which left the end canvas consisting of well over 100 different painted layers.)
<--- Represented Animated Interactions
Original Feedback:
- Everyone who applied for an interaction received a personal high resolution picture of their frame, signed by Baschz.
- The whole coming-of-art process could be followed live through a webcam.
- Anyone can send an object image for Selfcontrolfreak to interact with or you can send in a tee-shirt which he will wear on the canvas until somebody else decides to clothe him differently.
- The sequel (Masterpiece 2.1) can be followed on their site currently.
http://www.selfcontrolfreak.com/press/fontanel.jpg -- Interview with Selfcontrolfreak and Baschz (in Dutch).
Conclusion
Overall, I was extremely impressed by Olivier Otten (Selfcontrolfreak’s)work. He developed a new way to work interactively on the Internet and was the first ever to create a painting using a Web 2.0 approach, as seen in “Masterpiece 2.0”. The term Web 2.0 is commonly associated with web applications that facilitate interactive information, sharing, interoperability, user-centered design, and collaboration on the World Wide Web. A Web 2.0 site gives its users the free choice to interact or collaborate with each other in a social media dialogue as creators (prosumer) of user-generated content in a virtual community, in contrast to websites where users (consumer) are limited to the passive viewing of content that was created for them, (Wikipedia).
This approach (although not used directly) was also seen in his “Selfcontrolfreak” project. Usually while watching a video online, the viewer plays no role; they are the passive third person. However, this project made a successful stride towards using a Web 2.0 approach. Although the viewer was not the creator, they did play a large role in what Selfcontrolfreak did throughout the videos. However, it wasn’t until “Masterpiece 2.0” that Otten officially broke the imaginary boundary (the fourth wall) between actor and audience, interacting with the web viewers directly.
Both projects were playful and intriguing, showing a great deal of creativity. I enjoyed finding the two projects stylistically consistent (whether through using some form of the Web 2.0 approach, or by appearing experimental and humorous in nature.)
- Response by Jeroen van Geel (The Netherlands)
- Otten’s thoughts on Selfcontrolfreak
- Masterpiece 2.0
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