16´12, DV PAL, 2010
In 2006, I set up a small call centre in Belgrade, Serbia to process outsourced European telephone market survey work, the workforce being local English speaking Serbs.
As part of recruiting new workers, I developed a participatory video practice which involved the job applicants and gave them critical insights into and simulated experiences of the job they were applying for. They gave their consent to taking part in role plays of everyday challenges from the job which I filmed. I then reused this film material to make 'Demo Films' which I played back to job applicants in later rounds of the application process. This created a critical distance to the job requirements, both for the applicants and myself in the role of boss and artist, and I tried through these films to counter the alienating conditions of such work. This project spanned a five year period and culminated in a many layered study of the ethical dilemmas which arose in this experiment.
This video presents some of the key moments in the five year experiment.