"By 2040, all systems collide: information transfers through liquids – oceans and gases – as a ubiquitous mainframe supporting all life and intelligence. We see our planet like a brain with two hemispheres supporting one body. The ocean becomes the medium supporting the synapse pathway of multiple concurrent bodies in drift. The artists exchange a flurry of white paper vessels, representing the day to day deluge of information exchanged between people and neurons alike, until they each decide to share something deeper, more personal and sacred, represented by red paper vessels which they extract from their pockets and mouths and send across the ocean, as they disappear from one screen and appear on the other, having seemingly traversed the great expanse between the players. Finally, both performers submerge themselves completely in this fluid expanse which connects them, where a final ritual of convergence takes place."

Ocean Synapse premiered as a live stream media performance via the online Waterwheel platform for the World Water Day Symposium 3WDS14 on March 21, 2014. The two authors/artists were located in opposite hemispheres. Pell performed live from Melbourne, Australia and Burke from New York, United States. Preliminary filming occurred in Oakland, California and Port Phillip Bay, Victoria across the Pacific Ocean. Stay tuned, as Usman Riaz will score the short film in June 2014 adding another layer to this global story.

The first of x2 companion video art pieces to the short film ‘Ocean Synapse (2014) by Pell and Burke. Staring: JOHN CLIFFORD FREDERICKS, BENJAMIN BURKE Director, camera: PAUL MORRIS Editor: PAUL MORRIS. Filmed at the Oakland Marina, California US. The second of x2 companion video art pieces to the short film ‘Ocean Synapse (2014) by Pell and Burke. Staring: RUTH SANCHO HUERGE, ELENA MARQUEZ, SARAH DE LA CERDE, SARAH JANE PELL Director, camera: SARAH JANE PELL Additional filming: ELENA MARQUEZ Editor: SARAH JANE PELL. Filmed at Port Phillip Bay, Victoria AU. Post Production: SPELLART. Music: USMAN RIAZ. We also acknowledge the support of WaterWheel, RMIT Media & Communications and the TED Fellows program.