Harold Hejazi, known locally as ‘Harri,’ is a Canadian artist and game designer currently living in Helsinki. In recent years, he has been exploring video games as a medium for playable theatre that examines issues of race, marginalisation, and contemporary multiculturalism in Finland.
At the Outsider Art Festival, he will perform the third episode in his video game performance series titled ‘Adventures of Harriharri — Episode III’. This video game performance chronicles the life and times of Harriharri living in virtual Helsinki. Harriharri is a newcomer who arrives with high hopes of being welcomed into the culture. Despite his sincere efforts, he faces continuous obstacles in pursuit of integrating into Finnish society. The game is performed live in an interactive-cinema format and narrated through rap and song. In this multiplayer experience, the audience’s decisions influence the narrative – making each performance unique. In addition to Hejazi, the working group of the performance includes the game developers magu & Rolands Tīss, composer and sound designer Eliel Tammiharju and video technician Jokke Heikkilä.
Curators’ comments: “New kind of performance art that utilizes a video game and streaming as a medium. Bringing the video game world to the stage is something we haven’t experienced in Finland too often. Excellent satirical critique of the super important themes such as immigration and the difficulties of integration to a new culture.”
