mumok cinema
Twentysix: (V)FX
Wednesday, April 22, 2026, 7 pm

Since 2024, thematic screenings under the title Twentysix have been taking place at various locations, each dedicated to one of the twentysix letters of the Latin alphabet. Every letter marks the beginning of a thematic focus. Drawing on the concept of (V)FX, the sixth program of Twentysix examines the influence of special effects on the production and development of the cinematic image. From early devices such as the zoetrope and the magic lantern, cinema has been closely linked to visual effects—from fairground light shows and silent films to artificial studio worlds and CGI. The setting of the filmic image is shaped, manipulated, or distorted. No longer a direct referent or mere reflection of reality, the image functions as material through which something becomes visible that does not exist in this form. It is often difficult to determine when an effect begins, as boundaries blur between color grading and correction, retouching, the creation of supernatural worlds, and digital manipulation.

Program
Loretta Fahrenholz, Mashes of the Afternoon, 2018, 14 min
Andrew Norman Wilson, Kodak, 2019, 33 min
Lucy Raven, RP31, 2012, 5 min
Paul Spengemann, Untitled, 2015, 5 min
Viktoria Schmid, W O W (Kodak), 2018, 2 min
Nadim Vardag, Opening Shot (Schindler House), 2016, 3 min
Dara Birnbaum, Technology/Transformation: Wonder Woman, 1978, 6 min

Paul Spengemann, spin jump crawl climb dream bite hunt, 2024, laser show, 20 min (loop)

In the white space:
Nadim Vardag, Zoetrop (1), 2009, 2 s (loop)

The screening coincides with the release of a publication featuring essays by Julian Ernst and Katharina Hölzl, which will be available at the event.

Presented by Robert Bergmann and Julian Ernst

Twentysix is a project by Robert Bergmann and Julian Ernst. Previous installments include (A)rchitecture, Echo Correspondence, Vienna (2024); (B)iography, Prosopopoeia, Vienna (2024); (D)uration, Die Verabredung, Cologne (2025); (C)eremony, Schleuse, Vienna (2025); and (F)ound (F)ootage, Julia Stoschek Foundation, Berlin (2025).

Robert Bergmann lives and works in Vienna. He has been collaborating with the artist Maximilian Seegert since 2023. The venues of his most recent solo and duo exhibitions include Quality 1B, Melbourne (2026), Espai Souvenir, Barcelona (2024), saasfee*pavillon, Frankfurt am Main (2023) as well as Kunst im Quartier, Hamburg (2023). Bergmann also participated in group exhibitions at Galerie Gruppe Motto, Hamburg (2024), Kunstraum Schwaz (2023), and Kunsthaus Graz (2022). In 2024 he and Vivien C. Kämpf organized the group show Seating Arrangement at the UA26 exhibition space in Wien.

Julian Ernst lives and works in Vienna. Collaboration is a central element of his artistic practice. In 2019 he and Swan Lee founded the Cicada Collective, which is dedicated to collaborative formats oscillating between film, exhibition, and performance. His most recent exhibitions include Värn at Moderna Museet Malmö (2026), Choreography of Stones (2023) at Zirkusgasse, Vienna, and Life on its own (2023) at Kunstraum Schwaz. Most recently, he organized the screenings Dressing by candlelight (2023) at Kunstraum Schwaz and Spring Breakers Wien (2023) at UA26, Vienna, among others. Exhibitions he organized include pendaison de crémaillère (2023) at Kurzbauergasse, Vienna; Room 205 (2022) at Hotel Beethoven, Wien; and a letter (2022), Hasnerstrasse, Wien.