A train ride into abstraction created with increasingly abstract AI-generated imagery, this film is a simple yet mesmerising gesture which explores the essentials of the digital image. Hypnotic and thoroughly immersive, the experience highlights AI images as more than replicas of reality, but rather as abstract and architectural structures to explore. — Dana Melaver
Volume
360° VR Film
2025
10 min.
No Dialogue
Volume takes viewers on a journey from photorealism to non-representationalism. AI-generated videos that initially depict a realistic train ride gradually dissolve into increasingly abstract visuals. Details fade, artifacts emerge, and colors become more vibrant. The further the images travel away from photorealism, the more a new aesthetic begins to emerge. However, this transformation does not occur without resistance. The original image motif—the train route in the landscape—pushes back, striving to remain recognizable despite the ongoing transformations. The journey culminates in a non-representational, volumetric image space in which the viewer can immerse themselves.
When it comes to images, artificial intelligence is widely used to generate photorealistic images. However, due to this limitation of the medium, entirely new visual worlds often remain unexplored. Volume is a visual exploration of the types of images AI can create when used against photorealistic intent.
Festivals
DOK Neuland: Immaterial – DOK Leipzig International Festival for Documentary and Animated Film. Germany, 2025 (World Premiere).
Credits
A VR Film by Niklas Poweleit
Title Design Johanna Schäfers
Sound Design & Mix Tommaso Barbaro, Massimo Mariani
Sound Editing Luca Canzano
Post Audio Fullcode
Other works
Niklas Poweleit