I have started with the terrain itself. The western part of the SIM has been raised to create an elevated area, and from there I have terraformed a channel that runs all the way east, eventually reaching the open sea.

The channel is more than just a landscape feature. It is also a little homage to the kind of world-building I have always admired at Fantasy Faire, particularly in the work of Alia Baroque.

I have always been fascinated by those scenes where a waterway draws your eyes towards the horizon, with a vessel sailing away into the distance. There is something wonderfully evocative about it. It suggests a journey, a destination, perhaps even a story that we will never quite know. I would love to capture some of that atmosphere at Binemist II.

For now, I am concentrating on shaping the land and establishing the basic geography. What will eventually appear along the channel, and what stories the landscape might tell, remains to be discovered.

One step at a time. And, of course, under the principles of DOGME SL.

Over the years, I have accumulated a considerable inventory of objects, textures, scripts, and other resources. Some have been used in previous projects, some have been waiting for the right opportunity, and others may have been forgotten altogether. Instead of adding more to that collection, I want to challenge myself to work with what is already there. I have decided to give this approach a name: DOGME SL.

Inspired by Fantasy Faire

One of my greatest sources of inspiration in Second Life has always been Fantasy Faire. I am drawn to places where beauty and darkness coexist. Worlds that feel strange, mysterious, melancholic, or slightly unsettling. Places that hint at forgotten histories, lost civilisations, or something that has gone terribly wrong.

The appeal is not necessarily in the individual buildings or objects, but in the atmosphere of an entire world — the way architecture, landscape, lighting, and details come together to create a place that feels as though it has a story of its own. I also have a particular appreciation for some of the designers whose work I have encountered through Fantasy Faire, in particular Alia Baroque, Harveit Neux and DRD. Their creations have helped shape my own ideas about what a fantasy world can be.

Binemist II will be a personal homage to these worlds and the designers who inspire me. Not an attempt to recreate a particular region, but an opportunity to explore what I can do with the inspiration they have given me and the resources I already possess.

Why a Dogme?

The name is inspired by Dogme 95, the Danish filmmaking movement associated with Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg. Their manifesto introduced a set of self-imposed restrictions intended to challenge established filmmaking conventions and encourage a different kind of creativity.

I find that idea fascinating. What happens when you deliberately limit your options? When you cannot simply buy the perfect building, find the ideal decoration, or acquire another object to solve a design problem?

Perhaps you have to look at your existing resources differently. Perhaps an object can become something entirely different when placed in a new context. Perhaps a limitation can lead somewhere you would never have gone otherwise.

I do not expect every result to be perfect. In fact, discovering what works — and what does not — is part of the experiment. The rules are there to challenge me, not to make the process easier.

The DOGME SL Manifesto

1. The Inventory Principle

The development, construction, and decoration of the SIM must be carried out exclusively using objects, textures, scripts, and other resources that already exist in my inventory, or that I can create myself using the resources available to me.

2. An Homage to Fantasy Faire

The main world shall draw inspiration from the fantastical worlds of Fantasy Faire, particularly its dystopian universes. It shall be a personal interpretation, not a copy.

3. The Summer House as a World of Its Own

A designated part of the SIM shall be reserved for a summer house. It shall have its own identity, atmosphere, and aesthetic, and may stand in deliberate contrast to the fantasy world.

4. Limitations as a Creative Force

Existing objects shall be explored and combined in new ways. The limitations are part of the work, not obstacles to be circumvented.

We do not create by acquiring more. We create by discovering new possibilities in what we already have.

Two Worlds, One SIM

Although the dystopian fantasy world will be the main focus of Binemist II, I also want to reserve a part of the SIM for a summer house. This area will be a world of its own, with a separate identity and atmosphere. It does not have to follow the aesthetic of the fantasy environment or become part of its story.

I like the idea of having these two different experiences exist side by side: one world shaped by fantasy, mystery, and perhaps a little darkness, and another that offers a more personal space to retreat to. Both will be subject to the same inventory principle, but they do not have to share the same visual language.

The Challenge Begins

I have had ideas brewing in my head over the summer, but I do not yet know exactly what Binemist II will become.

That is part of the appeal.

Rather than beginning with a shopping list or a collection of things I want to acquire, I will begin by exploring what I already have. I will experiment, rearrange, combine, and rethink. Some ideas will work, others will probably fail, and some unexpected discoveries may take the project in directions I could not have planned.

I also like the slightly ironic idea of approaching this as a kind of virtual sustainability. I make no claims about the environmental footprint of a virtual world that depends on servers and computing power. The point is much simpler: I want to consume less within my own creative process and make better use of the resources already available to me.

Perhaps the most interesting part will not be the final result, but what the limitations teach me along the way.

This is the beginning of Binemist II under the principles of DOGME SL.

I look forward to discovering where they will take me — and to sharing the journey as the world begins to take shape.

For now it is just one massive flat plain, but I have lots of plans. My neighbour has a very nice outline of her SIM that is inspiring.

I also really like the theme of my Linden Home – the Mediterranean style in housing and the walls, so I might do something like that, but now next to the sea.

Linden Lab has very gracefully given me a “Mediterranean Content Creation Pack” so it should be possible.

My previous work also inspires me. I am excited to see what happens. Here’s some snapshot of Binemist and all the posts I wrote about it: tag/binemist/

It reminded me of San Mora, a build by DRD 10 years ago from which I drew a lot of inspiration in my own builds – several in fact: Vimmershavn in different forms. But it was off in some way and there was no reference to the creator – anywhere…

It turned out there was a reason for that – a very odd and disagreeable reason. The creators were in fact DRD that had also created San Mora 10 years ago. They write on their website that their design got bullied – maybe because they used AI, I don’t know – and that the region got covered in glowing prim markers, so they dropped it.

It was left with a strange vibe that was neither here nor there, but at least they took their build to another SIM and we can go and enjoy it. And it is amazing. You can visit it here: Reservoir Zero.

Time was running out. I did see all the regions, and then I got the hunt HUD – the expensive, cheating one. I did not have time to run around and look for stuff, so I did the first part – where you travel through all the region and collect something – this year it was magic seeds. But I must admit, I got a bit stressed, so I jumped ahead and claimed the big prize.

It felt a little empty, so I took advantage of my back stage pass on Thursday and did the second part of the hunt. Again the express HUD came to good use. I got the full story with very little effort.

Was it worth the 5000 L$? Not in so far at the prize – at at a long shot, but for the story and not at least for the good feeling of charity… it certainly was.

I might get enough time to visit every region and maybe also do the hunt.

Here are some of my impressions that I despite the time limit got to squeeze in

HEIAN | SLURL
Sponsored by GABRIEL
Region by Takuya Jinn

UNTAMED INK | SLURL
Sponsored by Whats Lost Spirits & Cica Ghost
Region by Stabitha Nightwish and Cica Ghost
A Shopping Region

Combine moonlight with the midnight ink of a purple kraken and whatever you draw will come to life in this magical 1930’s illustrated town.

STONEVEIL CROSSING | SLURL
Sponsored by Belle Epoque & Harshlands
Region by Kadaj Yoshikawa and Janire Coba
A Shopping Region

FAIRELANDS JUNCTION | SLURL
Sponsored by The Akipelago
Region by Saiyge Lotus 
Portals, Memorial & Worldling Cradle