Hosted by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, the 50th International Conference on Live Interfaces (ICLI 2020) is a biennial conference that brings together people who work with live interfaces in the performance arts, including music, visual arts, dance, puppetry, robotics and games.

After creating the performance (designed based on gestural language and an interactive system that manipulates sound and images in real time) and countless shows, Amândio Anastácio and Luis Leite (Grifu) embraced a new challenge by penning the article “Solitária – Gestural Interface for Puppetry Performance”, which will be published at the 50th International Conference on Live Interfaces (ICLI 2020), in Trondheim.

It is in the time we spend alone that we find ourselves. Recalling personal and intimate memories, the space we need to retreat to in order to be alone, is found when we find refuge within ourselves. It is based on this premise that Solitária was created. A confrontation between the virtual and reality, where kinaesthesia and occupation of the empty space creates a visual and audible narrative.

Luís Leite began developing digital puppetry in 2006 in his dissertation “Virtual Marionette – Real-Time Interactive Animation” to complete his Master’s in Multimedia Technology at the University of Porto’s Faculty of Engineering. It would just be a matter of time until he crossed paths with Amândio Anastácio, artistic director of Alma d’Arame to, together, begin creating Solitária.

Solitária was presented at the Porto International Puppet Festival (FIMP’19) in October 2019.