Total Refusal
Hardly Working
- 202220:29 min
HD video
Director: Total Refusal
(Susanna Flock, Robin Klengel, Leonhard Müllner, Michael Stumpf)
Hardly Working sheds a limelight on the very characters that normally remain in the background of video games: NPCs. They are non-player characters that populate the digital world as extras to create the appearance of normality. A laundress, a stable boy, a street sweeper and a carpenter are observed with ethnographic precision. They are Sisyphus machines, whose labour routines, activity patterns as well as bugs and malfunctions paint a vivid analogy for work under capitalism.
The pseudo-marxist media guerilla Total Refusal is a collective of artists, researchers, and filmmakers who upcycle the resources of mainstream video games to create political narratives in the form of videos, interventions, performances, and lectures.The collective's themes are informed by critical game studies and social theory in an attempt to promote and popularize a counter-hegemonic left. Their work has been screened at over 300 film and art festivals and exhibited at various spaces. Since their foundation in 2018, Total Refusal have been awarded with more than 65 prizes and honorary mentions.
totalrefusal.com
The pseudo-marxist media guerilla Total Refusal is a collective of artists, researchers, and filmmakers who upcycle the resources of mainstream video games to create political narratives in the form of videos, interventions, performances, and lectures.The collective's themes are informed by critical game studies and social theory in an attempt to promote and popularize a counter-hegemonic left. Their work has been screened at over 300 film and art festivals and exhibited at various spaces. Since their foundation in 2018, Total Refusal have been awarded with more than 65 prizes and honorary mentions.
totalrefusal.com
Digital Series #1
CON GRAZIA
- Alex Murray
- Nicholas Korody
- Emma Charles
- Hashdox / Egor Kraft
- Jacob Hurwitz-Goodman
- Do Not Research
- Dana Dawud
- Jacob Broms Engblom
- Miglė Vyčinaitė
- New Scenario
- Rustan Söderling
- Alex Declino
Mediations; the infrastructure of our digital existence, the pervasive reach of surveillance, the fluidity of online identity, and the boundless possibilities of world-building. Each pixel, line of code, and digital construct serves as both canvas and commentary. The virtual bleeds seamlessly into the real, illuminating the myriad ways in which technology shapes, distorts, and enriches our lives.
Throughout our platform, we feature a rotating selection of works from artists at various stages of their careers, each bringing a unique perspective to the digital conversation. Despite their diverse methods and expressions, these artists share a common goal: to transcend traditional art world structures and engage audiences on new, digital terms. Each segment begins with a contribution from a theorist or platform that has significantly influenced the discourse around the theme, setting the stage for the artistic explorations that follow. These introductions, whether in the form of talks, readings, or essays, are not just preludes; they are integral parts of the narrative we weave. They provide context, provoke thought, and invite critical engagement. By integrating these contributions into our web interface, we ensure that each segment is both engaging and accessible, creating a rich, ongoing archive that serves as a resource for future exploration.
A journey through the digital—a slice of binary space where the boundaries of the real are constantly being redrawn, and where every work is an invitation to see the digital realm anew. As you navigate our platform, we hope you find it a space for both discovery and reflection. Here, art and technology converge, illuminating the complexities of our interconnected world.
This project is made possible with the support of the Swedish Art Council.