‘rbn_esc’ is a project fusing cinema and live experimental visuals. Presenting a series of character scenarios, it invites the audience to construct narrative and cultural critique: rbn_esc >> urban escape. It is also a vj project of some development, with its premiere as a silent ‘vj film’ accompanying four tet in front of thousands at the big chill festival back in 2004. Thanks to a commission to perform at the 20/20 event in newcastle as part of av festival, since then the clip library has been worked over in a soho sound house, a soundtrack selected and resequenced, and the means to perform a refined, multichannel audio-visual whole developed. The resulting 45 minute performance work rbn_esc___av is a prominent example of what ‘live cinema’ can be.

rbn_esc was my response to seeing vjing being stuck in nightclubs and treated as wallpaper when i knew the potential was so much more. It was self-consciously the 'next generation vj set' in my own personal development, but also a challenge to others to really push the idea of 'vj works', to create performances with identity and meaning... something that an audience might actually want to watch, centre stage.

for the full story, see tobyz.net/tobyzstuff/projects/rbnesc