Performers in Work of Video Art by Wong Kit Yi

Seeking Four (4) Performers for One-Day Film Shoot:

• Character of Dad: male (cis, transgender, or nonbinary), 35-50, Nordic, preferably with Nordic accent and bearded
• Character of Mom: female (cis, transgender, or nonbinary), 30-45, Chinese, preferably with Chinese accent
• Character of teenage child: male (cis, transgender, or nonbinary), 12-early 20s, Eurasian
• Character of teenage child: female (cis, transgender, or nonbinary), 12-early 20s, Eurasian

FEE:

Rehearsal: $25/hour
1-Day Film Shoot: $250

PROJECT DESCRIPTION*:

Film shoot for new work of video art by artist Wong Kit Yi, co-commissioned by two internationally renowned art institutions: The Kitchen (New York, New York) and Lofoten International Art Festival (Lofoten, Norway). Finished work will premiere in fall 2024 at Lofoten International Art Festival - 2024 and, subsequently, in an exhibition at The Kitchen in New York.

Wong Kit Yi’s video references the format of a television sitcom and centers on a family of four: a father who is Norwegian and works as a fisherman, a mother who is Chinese and a trained scientist working on olfactory projects, and two children who each have their own unique interests and hobbies. The video’s storyline revolves around the father’s extracurricular interest in translating his role on a fishing vessel into work as a covert agent—not for military or intelligence purposes, as select countries have pursued via plants in the fishing industry, but rather in the interest of boosting the image of Norwegian arts and culture abroad. Referencing the soft power efforts that countries like the US have enacted historically through partnerships with arts institutions, this experimental sitcom weaves a narrative exploring the intersections of domestic life, art, politics, and mass media.

Artist Bio: Wong Kit Yi lives and works between New York and Hong Kong. Her works have been included in projects organized by The Kitchen (New York, 2023); M+ (Hong Kong, 2023); Tate Modern (London, 2023); FRONT Triennial (Cleveland, 2022); Tai Kwun Contemporary (Hong Kong, 2021); Public Art Fund (New York, 2020); Para Site (Hong Kong, 2019); Surplus Space (Wuhan, 2018); the Latvian Centre for Contemporary Art (Riga, 2017). She was a resident in the Chinati Foundation Artist in Residence program (Marfa, 2021) and received an MFA from Yale University. She has taught university courses about performance, video art, and new media and currently teaches at the School of Visual Arts (New York) in the MFA Fine Arts program.

• Confidentiality Disclaimer: Formal announcements about this newly commissioned project will be made in summer/fall 2024 via The Kitchen and Lofoten International Art Festival. Preliminary information about the work listed on this casting call is confidential and subject to change.

Requirements

REQUIRED AND DESIRED SKILLS:

All performers must have singing ability
All roles involve improvised singing (lyrics provided)
Bonus if performers possess unique/unexpected fun skills. For example: step dancing, tap dancing, break dancing, ability to make funny faces or unique noises, or anything interesting!
No prior acting experience required

REQUIRED PREPARATION AND AVAILABILITY:

Preparation: Script for the video (duration of no more than 30 mins total, divided into 3 acts) will be delivered 7 days in advance of rehearsal. Performers are required to memorize lines
Rehearsal: one 2-4 hour rehearsal in early August (date and location to be confirmed)
Film Shoot: Tuesday, August 13, 10:30am–5:30pm (with 30-minute lunch break) at The Kitchen at Westbeth (163B Bank Street, New York, NY, 10014)

TO APPLY:

Submit a CV plus an audition video showing you singing something. If you possess bonus skills (see above), video should showcase these as well. Videos should be no longer than 4 minutes.

Send materials as links and/or attachments in an email to fishperfume2024@gmail.com by July 12 at 9am ET. Finalists will be contacted for an in-person or Zoom interview.