Two nights of artists performing with AI as their instrument — generative visuals, live-coded sound, and works-in-progress from SFU's Metacreation Lab. Research backed by the Canada Arts Council. Open to the world.
Opening night at the Internet Archive Vancouver hub. Philippe Pasquier and the Metacreation Lab set the tone — projection-mapped generative visuals, audio-reactive systems, and live-coding performance. Artists performing with AI as their instrument, not their replacement. Full capacity event.
Thursday is the more intimate of the two. Arshia Sobhan Sarbandi's calligraphic AI work, works-in-progress from festival week participants, and experimental sound. Closer to a late-night residency than a stage show. Indigenous AI protocols and Musqueam cultural work featured.
DEFRAG co-lead. Canada Arts Council-funded. Creative AI researcher and performer.
Vancouver-based new media artist and creative strategist. Collaborated with Metacreation Lab on 'Dreamscape' using Autolume for artist-led model training. Meetup #25 speaker.
2025 Squatchy winner (Generative Culture). Research on generative AI for calligraphic Arabic script, supervised by Philippe Pasquier. Major contributor to the open-source AutoLoom project. Workshops worldwide on ethical model training.
Festival director. Runs the Vancouver AI Meetup (28+ months). RAP Workshop lead instructor.
DEFRAG isn't just a performance series — it's the public face of an active research program at SFU's Metacreation Lab. Some of what you'll see on stage is drawn directly from these threads.
A framework for consensual model training and cultural sovereignty. Working with Indigenous communities to define how — and whether — AI systems can be trained on cultural material.
Research-creation project establishing an elder-consent framework for digital reconstruction. How does cultural IP translate into generative systems?
Custom training on individual artist portfolios — with explicit permission and artist-led parameters. A direct alternative to mass scraping.
Generative systems designed for human co-creation, not replacement. Tools that amplify the artist's voice rather than substitute for it.
The research home of DEFRAG. Canada Arts Council-funded research-creation program.
Primary funder of the DEFRAG creative AI program.
Cross-collaboration with Kevin Friel's AI Film Club for Saturday's festival.
DEFRAG evenings are included in any Week Pass, 3-Day Pick, or Day Pass for the corresponding day. VIP gets reserved lounge access for both nights.