Dalang & Courses – Shadow Theater Video Project
As part of the Dalang and Courses initiative, I collaborate on a beautiful and meaningful project that combines language learning, creativity, and community. The program offers free German integration courses for women in different neighborhoods of Zurich, creating a safe and empowering space for learning and self-expression.
At the end of the course, each participant creates a shadow puppet and develops a short dialogue in German based on real-life situations they’ve practiced in class – such as going to the doctor, moving to a new apartment, or visiting a government office. These dialogues are then turned into small shadow theater scenes performed by the women themselves.
My role is to film each performance, edit the videos, and add light animated elements – such as onomatopoeias – to enhance the storytelling. The final videos are presented at a special end-of-course festival, celebrating the participants’ progress and creativity.
This project is a wonderful example of how language, art, and community can come together to empower and connect people.
Dalang & Co. – “Sein und Schein?”
Mask Performance & Video for the About Us! Festival 2025, Zurich
Mask Performance & Video for the About Us! Festival 2025, Zurich
In collaboration with Dalang & Co., I had the opportunity to take part in a powerful and poetic project presented at the About Us! – dem transkulturellen Festival 2025.
As the video artist, I filmed scenes in the heart of Zurich, capturing the city’s old town as well as a series of intimate interviews with the participating women. I later edited the final video, which was projected during the live performance, becoming part of a multi-layered artistic experience.
The performance, titled “Sein und Schein? That is the question,” explored the symbolic power of masks – as tools of transformation, protection, illusion, and truth. Inspired by an ancient Zen kōan, the women created their own masks and performed wearing them, weaving personal reflections, migration stories, and their connection to Zurich into a collective narrative.
The result was a moving dialogue between identity and place, fiction and reality, the visible and the hidden. The project gave voice to the performers’ unique experiences while resonating with universal questions of belonging, self-expression, and community.
A truly special and meaningful collaboration.
