At the age of 18, Seifert competed at the 1990 Commonwealth Games and finished fourth in the individual competition, winning bronze medals in the hoop and ribbon disciplines.[2] She went on to participate in the 1992 Summer Olympics,[7] finishing in 29th place in the individual rhythmic gymnastics competition.[8]
Music career
In 1999, Seifert and her brother, Gideon Joel Seifert, formed the band Bikini 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 the Bella Union label, and they released their debut studio album, Moratoria,[9] which was received positively by critics, with The Independent describing it as "...an awesome, soul-searching slice of sprawling Americana."[10] 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.
After the split of Bikini Atoll, Seifert and her brother formed the duo Joe Gideon & the Shark.[11][12][13] They released their debut album, Harum Scarum in 2010, which earned a positive reception from critics.[4][14][15] Online magazine Louder 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."[16] Writing for Clash 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".[17]
In 2013, Joe Gideon & the Shark released their second album Freakish through Bronze Rat Records.[18][19][20]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."[21]
In 2022, Seifert formed the indie electronica musical duo Lunge (stylized in all caps) with Mark "Arp" Cleveland, who was previously a drummer for Archie Bronson Outfit.[22][23] They released their debut single "Heavy Golden Swim" in March 2022.[24][25][26] In July 2022, it was announced that Lunge would make their live debut at the End of the Road Festival in September of that same year.[27] They released their debut extended playEP1 on April 7, 2023, which was preceded by the single "This Idle Motion".[28][29]
Acting career
Seifert was a part of WeatherGens, a group of several actors who played various characters made to represent the weather in PowerGen's sponsorship of the ITV National Weather between November 10, 1996, and October 27, 2001.[30][31] She portrayed Aurora, who represented the hot and dry weather.[32]
In 2009, Seifert was set to portray Lydia in the video game Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun, which was directed by her future collaborator Sam Barlow.[33] While it was heavily publicized and anticipated, it was controversially cancelled in 2012.[34]
In 2015, Seifert was cast in the video game Her Story, a crime fiction video game by Sam Barlow, where she portrays the role of Hannah Smith;[35] later on in the game, it is suggested that the character has a twin named Eve,[36] 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.[37][38] After working with Barlow on Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun, he contacted Seifert for the role after observing her work, stating that she was "very good at picking up a line and intuitively pulling a lot of the subtext into her performance".[39] Several edits were made to the script, reducing it from 300 pages to 80 pages, before he offered the part to Seifert.[40] Filming for Her Story occurred in her residence, Cornwall, over five days.[5] She stated that the role was difficult to portray, commenting that shooting was "intense" and "rather exhausting".[37] She further said that she felt pressure after realizing "the whole game is hinging" on her acting.[40]
Upon release, Her Story opened to instant and critical success, with critics praising the game as well as Seifert's performance. Justin Clark from GameSpot wrote that her performance "anchored" the game,[41] and Andy Keller of PC Gamer stated that her performance was "understated, realistic, and complex".[42] Joe Donnelly of Digital Spy believed her acting had the potential to inspire similar roles.[43] Todd Martens of the Los Angeles Times praised her acting,[44] and Adam Cook of GodIsAGeek deemed her performance "stunning".[45] Rich Stanton of The 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."[46] Chris Kohler of WIRED said "Seifert's performance is so captivating that I couldn't imagine this game working any other way."[47] Katie Smith of Adventure Gamers wrote that she was convincing in the role, and praised her for paying attention to the small details, such as her body language.[48]Polygon listed Hannah Smith on its list of the "70 Best Video Game Characters" and stated that Seifert played the role "superbly".[49]
In 2018, Seifert voiced the character Merethiel in the video game RuneScape.[63] Also in 2018, she made a guest appearance as Rachel on the British television series Delicious.[64] The same year, Seifert starred in the short filmMiss White as the titular character.[64][65]
In 2024, Seifert was cast in Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard's film The Extraordinary Miss Flower, which is about Emilíana Torrini. She performs as a dancer with Torrini and Caroline Catz, and musicians Nick Cave and Mark Monero.[66][67] She detailed the project as "a performance piece, dreamy and like a pleasant trip involving music and choreography. It is very theatrical and unique." It was released in the United Kingdom in 2025.[68] It is her first feature film role.
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