Registration link: https://forms.gle/W5oY6YhT3XD6c9pY8

• AI Hyperrealism (Chapter 1 of Anatomy of Non-Fact) — Recipient of the 2025 Prix Ars Electronica Award of Distinction in Artificial Life & Intelligence — by Martyna Marciniak illuminates the collapse of authenticity, authorship, and authority in today’s algorithmic image culture.

• LUMI (2024) by Abelardo Gil-Fournier and Jussi Parikka is a story of snow, light, and planetary reflection — transforming scientific data into a poetic meditation on climate, time, and synthetic landscapes. Parikka, a world-renowned media theorist, is celebrated for his work on Media Archaeology, the Geology of Media, and Operational Images.

The screening is followed by a roundtable featuring the filmmakers alongside Prof. De Kai , whose expertise in machine learning and AI ethics bridges the gap between computational logic and aesthetic practice to deepen the inquiry into synthetic agency. Moderated by acclaimed media artist Prof. Samson Young and curator Emilie Choi Sin Yi, the discussion will bridge global theoretical frameworks with local artistic perspectives.

Together, we trace how the optical has become a site of negotiation between sensory experience and machine learning.

Join us for an evening of screenings over drinks and refreshments, and to examine how the “synthetic” is redefining the boundaries between fact, fiction, and simulation.

Guest Speakers (Online & On-site)

• Martyna Marciniak (Artist/ Researcher based in Berlin)

• Prof. Jussi Parikkak (Artist/ Media Theorist/ Professor at Aarhus University, Denmark)

• Abelardo Gil-Fournier (Artist/ Researcher based in Marid)

• Prof. De Kai (Author/ Professor at HKUST)

Moderated by

• Prof. Samson Young (Artist/ Professor, CityUHK) & Emilie Choi Sin-yi (CityUHK SCM PhD candidate)

Curated by

• Emilie Choi Sin-yi (CityUHK SCM PhD candidate)

Hosted by

• School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong

Programme partner

• Videotage

This event is organized in collaboration with Leonardo Art Science Evening Rendezvous (LASER), an initiative by Leonardo/The International Society for the Arts, Sciences and Technology (Leonardo/ISAST). Please join us for this lively evening dialogue over some wine and snacks at SCM.

Leonardo/ISAST LASER Talks is a programme of international gatherings that bring artists, scientists, humanists and technologists together for informal presentations, performances and conversations with the wider public. LASER stands for Leonardo Art Science Evening Rendezvous, an initiative by Leonardo/The International Society for the Arts, Sciences and Technology (Leonardo/ISAST). Its mission is to encourage contribution to the cultural environment of a region by fostering interdisciplinary dialogue and opportunities for community building to over 50 cities and 5 continents worldwide. LASER website