Viva Seifert | |
|---|---|
 Seifert performing withJoe Gideon & the Shark at theRough Trade East record store in 2009 | |
| Born | (1972-04-15)15 April 1972 (age 52)[1] |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1990–present |
| Spouse | Mark "Arp" Cleveland |
| Children | 2, includingTipper |
| Relatives | Joe Gideon (brother) |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Instruments |
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| Labels | |
| Member of | |
| Formerly of | |
Musical artist | |
Viva Seifert (born 15 April 1972)[2] is a British musician, actress, and former gymnast. She first came to attention competing in the1992 Summer Olympics, and afterwards made a number of television appearances and performed with theWeatherGens. In 1999, she and her brother,Joe Gideon, co-founded the bandBikini Atoll, where she performed as akeyboardist until the group dissolved in 2006.
Seifert and her brother formed the musical duoJoe Gideon & the Shark in 2010, where she serves as amulti-instrumentalist. For starring in the 2015indie video gameHer Story, she earned accolades at theGolden Joystick Awards,The Game Awards, and theNew York Game Awards. In 2021, she co-founded the musical duo Lunge (stylized inall caps) with her husbandMark "Arp" Cleveland, where she serves as the primary vocalist.
Seifert was born inLondon,England, and currently resides inCornwall.[3][4][5] Her brother isGideon Joel Seifert, known professionally as Joe Gideon.[6] Her early aspirations were inrhythmic gymnastics.
At the age of 18, she competed at the 1990 Commonwealth Games and finished fourth in the individual competition, winning bronze medals in thehoop andribbon disciplines.[2] She went on to participate in the1992 Summer Olympics,[7] finishing in 29th place in the individualrhythmic gymnastics competition.[8]
Seifert was a part ofWeatherGens, a group of several actors who played various characters made to represent the weather inPowerGen's sponsorship of theITV National Weather between November 10, 1996, and October 27, 2001.[9][10] She portrayed Aurora, who represented the hot and dry weather.[11]
In 1999, Seifert and her brother,Gideon Joel Seifert, formed the bandBikini Atoll along with two other members, Ché Albrighton and Bastian Juel. In the band, Seifert was a keyboardist.[6] In 2004, they were signed to theBella Union label, and they released their debut studio album,Moratoria,[12] which was received positively by critics, withThe Independent describing it as "...an awesome, soul-searching slice of sprawling Americana."[13] In 2005, they released their second studio album,Liar's Exit, which received positive reviews. In 2006, Bikini Atoll disbanded, and further activities were ceased.
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After the split of Bikini Atoll, Seifert and her brother formed the duoJoe Gideon & the Shark.[14][15][16] They released their debut album,Harum Scarum in 2010, which earned a positive reception from critics.[4][17][18] Online magazineLouder Than War described the album as "a hell of a find. An extraordinarily colourful collection of psychedelic stories – demented yet sympathetic eulogies to a bunch of fictitious weirdos, set to a fashionably succinct swamp-rock beat."[19] Writing forClash magazine, Mike Diver deemed Seifert "one of the fiercest, most technically gifted rock 'n' roll drummers around – it's unsettling even to see her crack a smile."Clash also said that she handled her work with "flamboyant precision".[20] In 2013, they released their second albumFreakish throughBronze Rat Records.[21][22][23]The Quietus said that "…Viva's visual drumming style and Joe's control of any number of effects mangling, fuzzing and boosting an arsenal of crunching riffs to produce an enticing audio-visual package."[24]
In 2015, Seifert was cast in the video gameHer Story, a crime fictionvideo game bySam Barlow, where she portrays the role of Hannah Smith;[25] later on in the game, it is suggested that the character has a twin named Eve,[26] also portrayed by Seifert. Along with acting in the game, she also had a hand in the soundtrack, performing the ballad "The Twa Sisters" and helping alter the music.[27][28] After previously working with Barlow on the cancelled gameLegacy of Kain: Dead Sun,[29] where she was set to portray the character of Lydia,[30] he contacted her for the role after observing her work, stating that Seifert was "very good at picking up a line and intuitively pulling a lot of the subtext into her performance".[31] She was offered the part after several edits were made to the script, which initially was 300 pages long before being shortened to 80.[32] Filming forHer Story occurred in Seifert's residence,Cornwall, and lasted five days.[5] She stated that the role was difficult to portray, commenting that shooting was "intense" and "rather exhausting"[27] and said that she felt pressure after realizing "the whole game is hinging" on her acting.[32]
Upon release,Her Story opened to instant and critical success, with critics praising the game as well as Seifert's performance. Justin Clark fromGameSpot wrote that her performance "anchored" the game,[33] and Andy Keller ofPC Gamer stated that her performance was "understated, realistic, and complex".[34] Joe Donnelly ofDigital Spy believed her acting had the potential to inspire similar roles.[35] Todd Martens of theLos Angeles Times praised her acting,[36] and Adam Cook ofGodIsAGeek deemed her performance "stunning".[37] Rich Stanton ofThe Guardian wrote that "what seals the deal is a wide-ranging performance from Viva Seifert that funnels her character’s inner life into hundreds of intense vignettes" and further credited her for creating "a fictional character with something of the same allure: clearly very intelligent, clearly not telling the whole truth, and full of physical quirks. ... Seifert’s delivery is usually matter-of-fact and emotionally convincing."[38] Chris Kohler ofWIRED said "Seifert's performance is so captivating that I couldn't imagine this game working any other way."[39] Katie Smith ofAdventure Gamers wrote that she was convincing in the role, and praised her for paying attention to the small details, such as her body language.[40]Polygon listed Hannah Smith on its list of the "70 Best Video Game Characters" and stated that Seifert played the role "superbly".[41]
For the role, Seifert won theGame Award for Best Performance in2015,[42][43][44] where she was mistakenly credited for having appeared inThe Witcher 3, which spawned severalinternet memes and earned the organization criticism.[45][46] At the5th New York Game Awards, theNew York Videogame Critics Circle awarded Seifert the Great White Way Award for Best Acting in a Game.[47] She shared theGolden Joystick Award for Breakthrough Game with Barlow,[48] and was also a runner-up for the Performance of the Year Award.[49] At the12th British Academy Games Awards, critics were surprised to see that Seifert had not been nominated forBest Performer.[50][51][52] The actress stated in an interview withBBC that "I was disappointed I can't lie. It was all leading up to this moment, but now there's more awards, actors are taking it [gaming] more seriously."[50] Seifert also presented an award at the ceremony.[53][54]
In 2018, Seifert voiced the character Merethiel in the video gameRuneScape.[55] Also in 2018, she made a guest appearance as Rachel on the British television seriesDelicious.[56] The same year, Seifert starred in theshort filmMiss White as the titular character.[56][57]
Seifert is a part of theelectronica musical duo Lunge (stylized inall caps), which she co-founded with Mark "Arp" Cleveland, who was previously a drummer forArchie Bronson Outfit.[58][59] They released their debut single "Heavy Golden Swim" in March 2022.[60][61][62] In July 2022, it was announced that Lunge would make their live debut at theEnd of the Road Festival in September of that same year.[63] They released their debutextended playEP1 on April 7, 2023, which was preceded by the single "This Idle Motion".[64][65]
In 2024, Seifert appeared inIain Forsyth and Jane Pollard's filmThe Extraordinary Miss Flower, which is aboutEmilíana Torrini. She performs as a dancer with Torrini andCaroline Catz, and musicians such asNick Cave andMark Monero.[66][67]
Seifert is married to musicianMark "Arp" Cleveland—once a part ofArchie Bronson Outfit—with whom she has two children.[68][69] Her daughter,Tipper Seifert-Cleveland, is also an actress.[70][71][72][73] She keeps a low media profile, rarely accepting interviews, making public appearances, or speaking of her personal life outside of her creative ventures.[74][27]
With Bikini Atoll
With Joe Gideon & the Shark
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996–2001 | ITV Weather | Aurora | Main role |
| 2008 | Would I Lie to You? | Herself | Episode: "02x01" |
| 2012 | Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun | Lydia | Cancelledvideo game |
| 2015 | Her Story | Hannah Smith | Video game |
| 2018 | Delicious | Rachel | Episode: "The Heart" |
| RuneScape | Merethiel | Video game | |
| 2019 | Miss White | Miss White | Short film |
| 2024 | The Extraordinary Miss Flower | Dancer | Film |
| Award | Year[a] | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Joystick Awards | 2015 | Breakthrough Award[b] | Her Story | Won | [48] |
| Performance of the Year | Her Story | Runner-up | [49] | ||
| The Game Awards | 2015 | Best Performance | Her Story | Won | [42] |
| New York Game Awards | 2016 | Great White Way Award for Best Acting in a Game | Her Story | Won | [47] |
| NAVGTR Awards | 2016 | Outstanding Performance in a Drama | Her Story | Nominated | [75] |
