Manifesto Marathon 2008 The Otolith Group

Provenance

Self-transcribed from the recording's audio/video with Whisper ASR, then drawn from the frozen curation of the CCRU oral archive. The identifiers below fingerprint the exact source transcript files.

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Adjudicated APPROVED 2026-07-11 (basis: owner ruling 2026-07-11: institutional recordings released except fee-charging course content; lane recent-institutional -> recent-institutional-released). Series: standalone. Source: audio original (.mp3).

Timestamped map

These jump targets come from timestamps preserved in the source transcript, so they work as navigational anchors rather than editorially invented section labels. Timings are approximate — they mark where a passage begins, not exact word timing.

• 00:00:00

  It's a great, great pleasure to now introduce our next guest, the Otterly Group. The Otterly Group was founded in 2000 by its core members, Angelica Saga and Kodwo Eshun, who both live and work in London. The group works as media archives, history of futurity, and also the legacies of non-alignment…

• 00:00:30

  This latter aspect can be understood as part of the group's wider interest in the construction and consolidation of a counter-public sphere. The Otterly Group's films and also installation have featured widely in international shows, and they are actually recipients in 2008 of the Laffa Award. The Otterly Group will…

• 00:01:04

  But today, the Otterly Group will present a manifesto called A Field Manual for this Cronia. A very warm welcome to the Otterly Group. We are the Otterly Group. My name is Satyajit Ray. I'm the world's best-known Indian film director. I died in 1993. My name is Ritvik Ghatak. I'm also a well-known Bengali filmmaker…

• 00:02:02

  Those among us that were fortunate enough to attend the 8th World Futurological Congress at the Costa Rica Hilton will never forget it. We are happy to see so many of our friends and colleagues from that 8th Futurological Congress here with us this afternoon. Is it happening yet? How severe will it be? And when will…

• 00:02:57

  Waiting for the floods. And the droughts. And the famines. And the viruses. And the intolerances. And the partitions. And the pollutions. Of the future to overwhelm us. Shouldn't we take a wiser course of action? Shouldn't we preempt that possibility? Which possibility? Shouldn't we take action? Now? Now, before it's…

• 00:03:37

  Before the threat exists, we will have acted. The doctrine of preemption authorizes us to act. And whatever makes us doubt ourselves. Whatever makes us attentive. Whatever makes us apprehensive. Makes us appreciative. This will become the future basis for the present law. Whose futures inhabit yours? Whose futures…

• 00:05:09

  That has the capacity to fill the present Without presenting itself. It is a future that casts a present shadow. A shadow whose presence is fear. But the future will be better tomorrow. What, because tomorrow is another day? That is what my mother used to say. Perhaps she meant, will you take any notice of the living…

• 00:05:43

  Tomorrow's future is here now. I can see you there walking along the Corniche. Can you take shelter inside the threat that tomorrow's promise will deliver today? No one has learned how to control the threat of a threat. No one has learned how to control the fear of fear. Is it possessing you? No one has learned…