Filandón: Public Infrastructure for Transmedia Gatherings is a hybrid and experimental environment that explores how communities can meet and coexist in physical and virtual spaces in an equitable, accessible, and adaptive way. Designed to foster civic and public gatherings, this installation combines digital platforms, immersive technologies, and physical environments that enable synergistic interaction between multiple forms of presence and socio-temporal spaces.
The piece consists of a transmedia ecosystem with two main components. 1) The physical space, designed for gathering and multilayered interaction, is equipped with carpets and cushions inviting comfort, and an audiovisual system that includes virtual reality headsets, screens, speakers, and headphones. This space seeks to emulate the soft and welcoming environments observed in virtual communities and part of the #cozytech trend. 2) The virtual space, an environment that connects participants through text, video, audio, and virtual reality avatars, compiled via independent servers on the social platform VRChat emulating the physical space. This space unifies users regardless of their technological setup and cognitive load choice, allowing someone with a full-body avatar to interact with someone connected through a chat room.
The work addresses contemporary challenges related to accessibility, privatization, and decentralization. Through an infrastructure that balances the cognitive and computational loads of each participant, Filandón demonstrates how it is possible to create fairer and more democratic environments for remote and hybrid interaction. At the same time, it connects diverse private platforms via open-source custom built software, hosted on independent servers managed by user communities.
The piece is inspired by research on emerging online communities, such as those observed in VRChat, where intimate and cozy spaces have transformed the way individuals interact. These communities have led to unique environments that resonate with the #cozytech trend: rooms with giant beds, cushioned lounges, and floating platforms where avatars gather to chat, watch movies, or simply share a moment of closeness. These practices informed the creation of a physical and digital environment that invites new forms of intimacy in a collective context.
In parallel, the team conducted the first phase of an ethnographic study of the Telecentros network in Asturias, spaces that act as technological bridges in rural communities. The work highlights the importance of connecting these infrastructures with transmedia initiatives, creating a replicable model to serve both local and virtual communities.
Filandón: Public Infrastructure for Transmedia Gatherings opens a dialogue about the nature of human gatherings in the hybrid space, advocating for inclusive, civic, and emotionally resonant environments. The work not only imagines a future for hybrid meetings but also raises urgent questions about how to manage and govern the already existing digital space as public infrastructure.
