“23 WORKS” is a video series documenting the history of the art/tech group monochrom. monochrom has chosen 23 projects, anecdotes and stories out of their 20 years of material and recreated them as dioramas and machines.
Episode #6 tells a story from 2001 — about the early days of Soviet Unterzoegersdorf.
Just received our copy of A Guidebook of Alternative Nows in the mail.
We contributed a piece about Soviet Unterzoegersdorf and Sierra Zulu.
A Guidebook of Alternative Nows is a collaboratively created book. A Guidebook of Alternative Nows is a collaboratively created book. 34 visionary creative thinkers and makers contributed to this book which illuminates ways of devising more socially, economically, and ecologically just versions of now.
We currently celebrate 20 years of monochroms with an exhibition at MUSA in Vienna. As part of the show we also present an anecdote about Soviet Unterzoegersdorf, dating back to 2001. We chose the format of two jumping jacks connected to an audio player. The piece tells the story of an Austrian police officer who tried to question Commissar Chrusov (played by Johannes Grenzfurthner) — and fails.
Soldiers, performers! A triumph of international solidarity comes to an inspiring closure! Soviet Unterzoegersdorf asked for your bravery — and you responded fast, reliable and swift!
We received truly engaging videos! All of them a sign of hope and struggle!
Special kudos to Lukas Hoffmann, who not only worked out and sang, but also shot a dozen Nazis using the tactical simulator “Castle Wolfenstein”! We want to hire him as a truck driver or mechanic.
And we apologize to Cali, the dog. Your effort is beyond comparison, but there are no canines in Soviet Unterzoegersdorf. Trust us.
The glorious winner of our socialist outreach is Connie Panzenböck.
See for yourself.
A message to all other contestants:
Never forget to persistently educate yourselves in communist convictions! Learn to live, work, and struggle as Leninists, as communists!
The Soviet Unterzoegersdorf Armed Forces (in co-operation with Soviet Unterzoegersdorf’s Bureau For Analytical Research Of Problems Related To International Understanding) want to add a new member to its workforce.
Task assignment:
There is no limit of age and no gender-bias.
Send the video link to sierra-zulu AT monochrom.at before June 6, 2012.
If we like your video, you will be allocated to the honorable cast of Sierra Zulu.
Don’t disappoint the State.
(June 7, 2012 – Update: And the winner is…)
Two more storyboard sketches by maestro Andreas Rausch. No spoiler alert.
a) An athlete (most likely played by Adam Flynn)!
b) A cosmonaut (most likely played by Franz Ablinger)!
Hi-res versions of the drawings can be found on our Flickr group… join as a member!
Our friend Andreas Rausch lives in Bamberg/Germany and works as an independent illustrator and storyboard artist.
We are highly delighted that we could convince him to join our team as the official storyboard maestro.
What’s Andreas story?
After finishing school, Andreas began work in the field of ceramics as a potter, painter and sculptor. While working with ceramics in 1994, he started his career as an illustrator and comic artist for various magazines, postcard manufacturers and comic books publishers, which lead to his independence as an artist in 1997.
In 2000 he began to work as a storyboard artist and set illustrator and painter, which included productions for cinema and TV.
In 2005 his graphic documentary Zappaesk was published by Ehapa, and was given a 2-page feature in Rolling Stone magazine.
(Above: Andreas is drawing some early storyboard images; August 2011 in Vienna)
What’s a storyboard anyways?
A film storyboard is essentially a series of sketches produced beforehand to help a film team visualize the scenes and find potential problems before they occur. In creating a motion picture with any degree of fidelity to a script, a storyboard provides a visual layout of events as they are to be seen through the camera lens.
When can we see the first sketches for Sierra Zulu?
Patience is a virtue, comrade… but here is a first glimpse.
(Above: a first glimpse)
Illustrator and designer Josh Ellingson on his role in the production of Sierra Zulu.
(Interview/editing by Eddie Codel.)
Exhibitions (Solo shows):
2010 All The Best, Mission: Comics & Art, San Francisco, CA;
2009 Bots, Bugs, and Beasts, The Art of Joshua Ellingson, The Museum of Robots, Second Life;
2009 South Carolina State University, Fine Arts Building, SC;
2006 Super7 Gallery, San Francisco, CA; 2003 KidRobot, San Francisco, CA
