by Margherita Fontana
The Frame Beyond presents two virtual reality works selected from the latest international scene, in cooperation with EXT (Extended Realities Research Centre at the University of Milan ‘La statale’). This year, Concorto Film Festival gives an insight into what is known as “pro-social VR”, featuring works that use immersive technologies to address political issues, drawing viewers into the narrative’s emotional core.
In The Dollhouse by Charlotte Bruneau and Dominic Desjardins, we experience the point of view of Juniper, a 9-year-old girl, as she begins to understand that her family abuses its power over Magnolia, a domestic worker who comes from afar. Through the fragile universe of a dollhouse, we are drawn into family dynamics and asked to step into the shoes of those who believe they can control others. Less Than 5gr of Saffron by Négar Motevalymeidanshah invites us on a journey with Golnaz, a young Iranian woman who migrated to Germany, taking us in an intimate and painful experience triggered by the scent of saffron: an ordinary activity, like cooking a dish associated with one’s home, brings back the traumatic memory of migration and loss. The involuntary memory associated with smell triggers a whirlwind of intense, uncontrollable emotions, which are visually expressed through an all-encompassing form.
Films featured in The Frame Beyond:
The Dollhouse, Charlotte Bruneau, Dominic Desjardins, Canada, Luxembourg, 2025, VR 6DoF, animation, 25’
Less than 5gr of Saffron, Négar Motevalymeidanshah, France, 2025, VR 6DoF, animation, 7’
Where and when: Monday, August 24, through Saturday, August 29, 2026, from 4:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., at Circolo Arci Rathaus, Via Pietro Giordani 4, Piacenza.
Free admission with an Arci membership card. Reservations are recommended at the following link: The Frame Beyond Showcase.
This event is organized together with with the Center for Coordinated Research on Extended Realities – EXT, directed by Andrea Pinotti and hosted by the “Piero Martinetti” Department of Philosophy at the University of Milan, as part of the “Departments of Excellence 2023–2027” project awarded by the Ministry of University and Research (MUR).
