Poetry of Separation: The Aesthetics of Spatial Montage and Generative Editing for Multi-layered Screens

‘Poetry of Separation’ is a media artwork that utilizes an algorithmic generative editing system, selecting shots in real-time to be rendered over four screens arranged in layers. Editing in cinema reconstructs images by montage, deriving meaning from the juxtaposition of multiple shots. Although multi-screen projections have been used to present sectional montages that stress the simultaneity of events, spatially separated screens can disrupt attentiveness and affective involvement; the layered architecture avoids disruptive fragmentation. The generative editing system selects shots for the layered screens stochastically, with authorial constraints and probabilities using pre-determined shot criteria. Narrative flow and authorial intents are not damaged due to these criteria, but nevertheless unexpected effects arose from the stochastic system. The authorial intentions of improvisation and separation in the film content of ‘Poetry of Separations’ find resonance with the automatism of the generative editing system and multi-dimensionality of the screens.