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No crystal ball, but a lot of imagination and a little clairvoyance. This is the recipe for “design fiction”, this capacity for foresight that becomes precious in an anxious society where dreams are lacking, whether to project or protect oneself. And if you could make it your job ?
Minority Report, Brave New World, 1984… More recently, Black Mirror, Dune, Panorama. In books, series or films, there is no shortage of fiction and it has always had the power to give ideas, to inspire, to encourage. Often, it is perceived as something other than entertainment. By juxtaposing realistic elements with the imaginary, it offers another perspective on what we already know, by confronting it with what we do not yet know. This gives it a prospective dimension, a priori fictional, which nevertheless has a tangible impact on reality.
Red Team Defense on the front line
So, when the Ministry of the Armed Forces calls on science fiction authors to better prepare for the future of our society, it results in colorful scenarios. Founded in 2019, the Red Team is now made up of around ten authors, illustrators and designers, behind four prospective seasons.
“The Rush to Space” and “Facing the Hydra” are the last two scenarios imagined by the Red Team, published in 2023. The first projects us into a universe of conflicts linked to the conquest of space; the second into a world where anyone can learn anything instantly thanks to the implantation of a chip. Any resemblance to universes that have, or have not yet existed, is obviously not fortuitous.
This is the whole mission of the Red Team, as they derive it on their website: “Imagine the threats that could directly endanger France and its interests.” To do this, the authors work hand in hand with more than fifty scientific and military experts, considering in their thinking “the technological, economic, societal and environmental aspects of the future that could generate potential conflicts by 2030-2060.”
The imagined stories, when they are not confidential, are accessible on the Red Team website through interactive and immersive journeys. A way of giving prospecting, innovation and imagination a special place in our relationship with society. And the army is no longer alone in designing fiction as a future reality: today, “design fiction” has become a profession.
Responding present for the future
As explained by The ConversationIn an article published on September 22, 2024, companies are now looking for screenwriters or designers capable of “mobilizing science fiction to project potential futures.” This is the whole challenge of the profession: remaking the world, as one might say, dreaming reality.
It would be a question of “designing fictions”, of “mobilizing imaginations to glimpse desirable futures”. And these skills are expected in various structures such as the Hermès house, MATMUT or even the Normandy Region. In addition to the potential conflicts imagined by the army, the future certainly has many other surprises in store for us. The environment, culture and technology, among others, are all subjects that can interest us in designing the society of tomorrow. And it is not necessarily to think about transhumanism or the end of the world. On the contrary, it would rather be a question of finding virtuous paths to take in the future.
This is why companies are looking into the issue, giving the “dreamer” a completely different place than the back of the class. At the same time, slowly but surely, universities are gradually integrating into their curricula modules focused on the design of fiction and their application in situations.
We analyze Dune 2 and we delve into the Valley of Sicilyby Alain Damasio. And here, the interest of “design fiction” lies in the fusion between creativity and scientific rigor. In other words, there is no question of getting lost in completely crazy delusions. The idea is as follows: “develop representations of the future” that can “be an integral part of the strategy and innovation of companies”. To do this, we study a range of scenarios ranging from the probable to the possible, passing through the plausible and aiming for the preferable. And to better understand and grasp them, we must bring these potential futures to life, through narration and the design of artifacts.
Finally, all this suggests that today's society is becoming aware of the urgency of transforming itself, while considering imagination as a necessary driving force for change. Since it is requested, let's continue to dream.
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