The world and the universe is a huge sprawling place above and beyond what any of us, particularly the late Stephen Hawking could have envisioned, and we continue to find our feet and our place throughout what clearly is, in the grand and infinite scheme of things, a relatively short period of time immortal.
Jacqui Fifer’s brand-new documentary, THE PORTAL, which she co-produced with Tom Cronin (from his story), got its’ premiere at Dances With Films in Los Angeles.
It focuses on the virtue of reaching out to people and making sure that you are OK overall, be it through human interaction or utilising artificial intelligence through programming unconditional love within the memory banks.
It is certainly an age-old philosophy and determination amongst scholars and scientists and is something which the individuals amongst the narrative of this film have bought into. Amongst these stories, there’s Amandine Roche, whose experiences in Afghanistan led her to a more holistic solution through Buddhism. There is Due (pronounced ‘Zway’) Quach, the daughter of Vietnamese immigrants in America whose childhood experiences, coupled with getting into Harvard, both clouded and shaped her experiences, Heather Hennessy, a runner whose life-changing injuries brought her on a new path; and Ron ‘Booda’ Taylor, a ghetto kid whose recommendation by a youth court judge led him to serve in the military.
If you were tantalised and intrigued by Alicia Vikander’s performance as the AI robot in EX MACHINA, then the subplot of ‘Sophia The Robot, which Dr. Julia Mossbridge focuses on in the story, talks of using the technology for a more emotional connection to change the course of people’s lives – and perhaps humanity.
Sophia certainly is something to behold and it certainly makes you realise how far the science has advanced when we actually see her talking to camera like her human counterparts on a couple of occasions.
Up to a point though, the film covers a lot of old ground and gives us pretty much a similar moral idea and objective to move towards that any number of previous documentaries with a desire to enforce change of both attitude and mind-set have covered.
Ultimately, it will take more than a thoughtful documentary to enforce action, but THE PORTAL certainly will give audiences something to think about.
If you want to know more, then click here and you can find about more about about Dances With Films here.
