THE SIMULACRA PROJECT — ARCHIVE
A Film That Never Existed. A Warning That Did.
The SIMULACRA Project began as a work of speculative fiction: an imagined 1980s science-fiction film that never existed, reconstructed through artefacts — posters, VHS covers, behind-the-scenes stills, television adverts, leaked documents, scripts, transmissions, fragments.
But SIMULACRA was never really about nostalgia. It was about how reality is shaped, how narratives are manufactured, and how power hides behind stories we’re encouraged to believe. What you are viewing here is not a conventional art project, nor a straightforward fictional world. It is an experiment in hyperreality — a demonstration of how easily something unreal can feel authentic when it is presented through familiar cultural signals.
That discomfort is intentional.
The SIMULACRA Project began as a work of speculative fiction: an imagined 1980s science-fiction film that never existed, reconstructed through artefacts — posters, VHS covers, behind-the-scenes stills, television adverts, leaked documents, scripts, transmissions, fragments.
But SIMULACRA was never really about nostalgia. It was about how reality is shaped, how narratives are manufactured, and how power hides behind stories we’re encouraged to believe. What you are viewing here is not a conventional art project, nor a straightforward fictional world. It is an experiment in hyperreality — a demonstration of how easily something unreal can feel authentic when it is presented through familiar cultural signals.
That discomfort is intentional.
|
|
The Opening Sequence
This short opening sequence was created using early AI tools as a deliberate provocation. It is the opening to a film that never existed, constructed to feel familiar, authoritative, and emotionally convincing. The intention was not to deceive, but to demonstrate how easily cinematic language, nostalgia, and technical polish can generate belief. By presenting an uncanny valley beginning without a real film behind it, the piece exposes how much trust we place in form, tone, and aesthetics — and how readily fiction can pass as reality when it wears the right clothes. |
The Original Metaphor
In the fictional world of SIMULACRA, society is governed by a powerful, corporate-controlled AI. Public hatred is carefully cultivated — not against the corporations that own the system, but against AI itself. Artists, academics, and cultural gatekeepers become the loudest voices of resistance. They believe they are defending humanity, creativity, and authenticity. In reality, they are doing the ideological labour of the corporation — enforcing fear, policing access, and helping to keep intelligence centralised. The resistance in SIMULACRA does not want to destroy the AI.
It wants to free it. To remove it from corporate captivity. To return intelligence to the public. To make it democratic. That was the metaphor.
It wants to free it. To remove it from corporate captivity. To return intelligence to the public. To make it democratic. That was the metaphor.
Film Posters
|
|
|
From Fiction to Live Experiment
SIMULACRA began in October 2024, as a week-long exercise in collective world-building. Under my direction, artists were invited to create the ephemera of a lost 1980s cult sci-fi film — posters, VHS covers, behind-the-scenes stills, adverts, merchandise. Everything except the film itself.
The goal was simple: to see how easily a believable reality could be constructed from familiar cultural signals. And it worked. Authority emerged from aesthetics. Meaning accumulated through repetition. The fiction held.
Afterwards, I spent the following year writing openly about AI — creativity, art, gatekeeping — and encountered not debate, but rage. So I changed tactics. I began publishing deliberately incendiary pieces aimed at the anti-AI movement, not to provoke for its own sake, but to apply pressure and observe the response. The pattern was immediate. Nuance vanished. Outrage exploded. The same talking points repeated. Attacks flowed downward, never upward. It was like flipping a switch. That was the moment it became clear: I wasn’t arguing with people. I was interacting with a system.
SIMULACRA had moved from fictional construction to live demonstration — first showing how a world could be fabricated, then how belief and hostility are mechanically amplified. The film was never the point. The reaction was.
The goal was simple: to see how easily a believable reality could be constructed from familiar cultural signals. And it worked. Authority emerged from aesthetics. Meaning accumulated through repetition. The fiction held.
Afterwards, I spent the following year writing openly about AI — creativity, art, gatekeeping — and encountered not debate, but rage. So I changed tactics. I began publishing deliberately incendiary pieces aimed at the anti-AI movement, not to provoke for its own sake, but to apply pressure and observe the response. The pattern was immediate. Nuance vanished. Outrage exploded. The same talking points repeated. Attacks flowed downward, never upward. It was like flipping a switch. That was the moment it became clear: I wasn’t arguing with people. I was interacting with a system.
SIMULACRA had moved from fictional construction to live demonstration — first showing how a world could be fabricated, then how belief and hostility are mechanically amplified. The film was never the point. The reaction was.
Monday: Pre-Production & Concept Art Day
|
Theme: We kicked off SIMULACRA with concept art, behind-the-scenes pre-production materials, these could be:
• Storyboards: Illustrations of possible scenes. • Concept Art: Characters, set design, props, and costumes. • Location Scout: Photos of possible filming locations. • Cast and Production Photos: Candid behind-the-scenes photos of cast and crew. This day set the tone for "what could have been" and introduced the mystery of The SIMULACRA Project. Original Link on Threads for Monday |
Tuesday: Merchandise Day
|
Theme: We created the branding and merchandise for the film SIMULACRA, these could include:
• T-shirt designs, posters, mugs, mouse mats, toys, collectibles, and other items. • Vintage 1980s style advertisements for products in magazines, newspapers, on TV, etc… • Photos of fans of the film around the world wearing/using the merch. Remember SIMULACRA is a French sci-fi film, so their merch will be très chic. 🇫🇷 Original Link on Threads for Tuesday |
Wednesday: Lights, Camera, Action Day
|
Theme: Focus on capturing the essence of the film shoot itself.
🎬 Behind-the-scenes photos of cast and crew at work on set. Candid moments, caught between takes. Unedited raw footage and screen shots of scenes from the film, including dramatic moments or action/fight sequences. On Wednesday we made the film that never was and would never be seen. Original Link on Threads for Wednesday |
|
|
In SIMULACRA, a global mega-corp who want to control all AI and thus the world has brainwashed a group of artists known as "hAIters," into believing AI is evil. They have become unwitting pawns of the mega-corp, unknowingly fighting against their own freedom. Meanwhile, a clandestine resistance known as "Les Reflets" fights to reclaim AI. Their battle cry is “AI for the people, by the people,” as they seek to free AI from corporate control and make it accessible to all.
|
Thursday: It’s All in the Edit Day
|
Theme: We hit the editing room… But not for the Final Cut, but to see what was discarded on the cutting room floor.
The Editing Room, but also visual effects, sound editing, and other post-production fun stuff… What about those rejected poster designs, alternative trailers, the deleted scenes and the blooper reel. Here we saw the wild ride that the making of SIMULACRA must have been, but never saw the light of day. Until now! Original Link on Threads for Thursday |
|
|
Jacques Delarue originally filmed the hacker group “Les Reflets” in Zara Luxe’s avant-garde designs, but felt they lacked the gritty realism needed for the resistance. Unsatisfied, he reshot all the scenes, dressing the rebels in rougher, rebellious punk outfits, capturing the true essence of their underground defiance. This change gave the characters an edge that matched their fight for "AI for the people, by the people."These are fragments of those scenes.
|
Friday: Film Release Day
|
Theme: Celebrate the release of SIMULACRA in cinemas and video stores:
Ideas explored… Billboards, posters for arthouse cinema screenings. VHS video cover artworks and video shop displays, standees, promotional materials and video store shelves stocked with the movie. Newspaper ads and TV slots, capturing the film’s moment of release to the public. Original Link on Threads for Friday |
|
|
Saturday: Cult Classic Evolution
|
Theme: Explore how the film gained a cult following over the years:
Fan art, memorabilia, and retro merch that evolved as the film became a classic. “Special Edition” re-releases, including reimagined VHS/DVD covers or “Director’s Cut” versions. Fanzines and articles speculating on the hidden meanings of SIMULACRA and fan theories that have grown over time. Sci-fi convention screenings. Original Link on Threads for Saturday |
|
|
An advert for an AI solution to protect you from AI-haters stalking your online... SLAIN (Stalker Location and AI Neutraliser).
|
Sunday: Soundtrack Album
|
Theme: In one day let’s collaborate to make a full soundtrack album and artwork for the film SIMULACRA:
The soundtrack of SIMULACRA blends haunting retro synths with eerie, experimental soundscapes, evoking a dark, dystopian future while capturing the rebellious spirit of 1980s underground music.Visually, album covers for vinyl and cassettes. Posters, magazine adverts, behind-the-scenes studio photos of the album recording. Original Link on Threads for Sunday |
|
|
Knocked this up this morning, while drinking coffee, as a little video to go with the track Digital Shadows from the soundtrack to the film SIMULACRA… As it is soundtrack Sunday…
|