Comprehensive documentation and various theoretical perspectives on the film Labor Power Plant by Romana Schmalisch and Robert Schlicht, a caustic, documentary-inspired science fiction narrative that, among other things, examines the unique nature of the relationships formed by the labor market.
A new production centre, set in an undetermined future. What is being produced here? People with their own wills, interests, and desires are being equipped with the physiological, cognitive, psychological and social core competencies in order to transform them into human resources. Welcome to Labour Power Plant!
This fictional institution, which is portrayed in Schmalisch's and Schlicht's eponymous film and various exhibitions as well as a theatre play, may appear dystopic at first, all of its elements, however, are based on real-existing strategies and methods of preparing people for work in job centres and society at large, acting out the social construction of the commodity labour power.
Besides documenting the body of work around Labour Power Plant, the publication brings together a wide range of theoretical perspectives—investigating "humanist" management strategies, the history of freelance work, the appropriation of originally critical art forms, the concept of labour power, film historical reflections on filming "Capital," and the use of dance notation systems in the industry—but also "transcripts" from working life as well as other materials and interviews gathered in the course of the research.
Born 1974, Romana Schmalisch is an artist and filmmaker based in Berlin.
Robert Schlicht (born 1975 in Berlin) is an artist and filmmaker.
Edited by Romana Schmalisch and Robert Schlicht.
Contributions by Sergio Bologna, Ralf Forster, Anna Leon, Danièle Linhart, Romana Schmalisch, Robert Schlicht, Marina Vishmidt, Elena Vogman.
