Projection - Preemptive Listening

Show & Culture

A film by Aura Satz Synopsis: ‘Preemptive Listening’ is a work of non-fiction cinema that re-imagines sirens to forge a new understanding of present and long-term emergencies. The siren serves as a global symbol of potential trauma, an emblem warning of climate catastrophe, a mouthpiece for sonic governance and crisis management. Many sirens are relics from WW2 and the Cold War, repurposed to communicate threats of extreme weather, to commemorate collectively, or to test disaster preparedness. With a soundtrack of new siren sounds by experimental musicians, the film poses questions: Does an alarm have to be alarming? How can we counter alarm fatigue, both as a lived reality and as a metaphor for our current state? Can we imagine signals for the long-term, sounding the alarm for distant futures and ecological catastrophe? Can we imagine sirens beyond the human? The film aims to rethink alarm signals as learned, potentially rewired cues. The screening will be preceded by a tour led by curator Charles Wennig and followed by a Q&A with the artist.