The Art Wire

• BRIEFS Special: Fantastic Annihilation // Aleksandra Jarosz

  In this episode, host Evgeni Pozankov talks with Aleksandra Jarosz, the lead designer of Fantastic Annihilation, a subversive and intense “action-clicker” game made for Briefs 2024: Death. Developed with collaborators Thomas Feichtmeir and Alejandro Rodriguez Ramallo, the game challenges players to systematically eradicate all life on Earth— not as an idle diversion, but as a demanding, real-time experience.Aleksandra discusses the game’s philosophical roots in Peter Wessel Zapffe’s “The Last Messiah” and her inspiration from conceptual art exploring ecological destruction. The gameplay riffs on idle genres like Cookie Clicker, but turns them on their head: instead of passively waiting, players must actively and aggressively click, sterilize, upgrade, and annihilate, facing a relentless struggle against organic reproduction and time.The game’s standout feature is its dark, finite ending: players are ultimately forced to kill their ever-cheerful guide “Annihilation-chan”—a nihilistic cheerleader quoting existential philosophy—and finally, themselves. It’s a deliberate, unsettling closure that reflects on ecocide, ego, and the human desire for control, presented through grim humor and genre-bending design.This episode dives deep into game design as narrative, balancing mechanics with message, and flipping conventions in both storytelling and player reward. A true clicker with an end, Fantastic Annihilation is a radical experiment in existential gameplay. Fantastic Humans are: Alejandro Rodriguez Ramallo, Aleksandra Jarosz, Thomas Feichtmeir, HexenkraftBRIEFS: https://www.goldextra.com/en/briefs-a-microgame-series

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  52:25
• BRIEFS Special: Death to Venice // Studio Lichene

  In this episode of ArtWire, host Evgeni Pozankov interviews Eva and Andrea of Studio Lichene, the creative duo behind Death to Venice, a visually rich Twine game developed for Briefs 2024: Death.Studio Lichene—named after the symbiotic organism “lichen”—embraces themes of mutualism over competition, which echo throughout the game. Death to Venice is a hybrid of interactive fiction and visual novel, depicting a near-future Venice in ecological and social collapse, seen through six poetic vignettes told from the perspectives of humans, animals, a plant, an AI, a glass object, and even prisoners.The team explores death in layered ways: ecological decay, cultural loss, social isolation, and forgotten memory. Each district (sestiere) of Venice is rendered with real photographs and manipulated visuals, creating a surreal yet grounded sense of place. Eva and Andrea reflect on the creative challenges, including managing agency across non-human protagonists and creating interactivity without traditional puzzles.They also discuss lessons learned from their previous Briefs game (Parallelepipedon) and the deeper clarity and emotional resonance they aimed for this time around.https://www.goldextra.com/en/briefs-a-microgame-series

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  1:20:48
• BRIEFS Special: Pearl on the Road / Soph Podestá

  In this episode of ArtWire, the Gold Extra podcast, host Evgeni Puzankov speaks with Soph Podestá, the developer behind A Pearl on the Road, a narrative-driven driving simulator created for the Briefs 2024: Death microfund. Soph shares insights into the formation of her team, Cameria Art Games, and their development journey.The game follows an old trucker navigating through the Sierras of Córdoba, facing a choice: stop to reflect on meaningful moments or push forward to outrun an inevitable storm. The narrative explores themes of life, memory, and the inevitability of death.Soph discusses the challenges of game development, including switching to Unreal Engine, long build times, and team coordination. Despite the struggles, she expresses gratitude for the experience and the opportunities Briefs provided.The episode wraps up with reflections on game jams vs. Briefs, and advice for future participants: just apply and start early.Check out A Pearl on the Road and other Briefs-funded games via the links in the show notes.

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  42:21
• Sarah Fitterer - about art, AI, activism and a lot more

  Note: This episode includes discussions of explicit sexuality, adult themes, and violence in the context of art and creative projects. We explore unconventional materials and themes, which may be sensitive or uncomfortable for some listeners. Please be advised that this content is intended for mature audiences only. About the episode: On a lovely early-summer day, Sarah and I (Sophia) sat down at the steps outside of St. Virgil conference center in Salzburg. We met at the conference "AI between responsibility and innovation" where Sarah was part of gold extra's panel "AI an Art, Culture and Media". In this podcast episode we talk about Sarah's art projects, including "So tell me, GPT" and "Fan Fiction Wishing Well". Sarah even shares some inside information about her art project about an alter ego named "Horst" and his sexual relationship to chicken. Furthermore, we dive into the topic of fan fiction, AI and humankind and a lot more. Did you know, that "50 Shades of Grey" started as a fan fiction about "Twilight"? Me neither. So enjoy the episode!

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  43:30
• Putins Media Playbook in the US: 2024-2048

  In this special episode of The Art Wire, we delve into the unsettling parallels between Russia’s media transformation under Putin and concerning trends in the U.S. Drawing from my research in digital and AI literacy, recent talk feedback, and a detailed analysis of Putin’s tactics, I explore how small steps toward media control could gradually reshape democracies in the West. This AI-driven dialogue, grounded in my comprehensive document—which references the so-called Project 2025, Bob Woodward's recent book War, and many other sources—examines how "Putin's Media Playbook" might influence the future of U.S. media and society. For deeper insights, check out the supporting document here. Join us as we explore the line between influence and control.

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