Film Clip (143)
Find narratives by ethical themes or by technologies.
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- 6 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Robert Daly is a programmer at the company Callister, which developed the immersive virtual reality game Infinity and its community for the entertainment of users. Daly is typically seen in the shadow of the co-founder of the company, the charismatic James Walton. Unbeknownst to anyone else, Daly possesses a personal modification of the Infinity game program, where he is able to upload sentient digital clones of his co-workers to take out his frustrations upon, as he does with Walton in this narrative.
- Kinolab
- 2017
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- 6 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Virtual Vindictiveness and Simulated Clones Part I: Daly and Walton
Robert Daly is a programmer at the company Callister, which developed the immersive virtual reality game Infinity and its community for the entertainment of users. Daly is typically seen in the shadow of the co-founder of the company, the charismatic James Walton. Unbeknownst to anyone else, Daly possesses a personal modification of the Infinity game program, where he is able to upload sentient digital clones of his co-workers to take out his frustrations upon, as he does with Walton in this narrative.
What should the ethical boundaries be in terms of creating digital copies of real-life people to manipulate in virtual realities? How would this alter the perception of autonomy or entitlement? Should the capability to create exact digital likenesses of real people be created for any reason? If so, how should their autonomy be ensured, since they are technically a piece of programming? Are digital copies of a person entitled to the same rights that their corporeal selves have?
Black Mirror: Daly Gets Frustrated-
- 9 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Robert Daly is a programmer at the company Callister, which developed the immersive virtual reality game Infinity and its community for the entertainment of users. Daly is typically seen in the shadow of the co-founder of the company, the charismatic James Walton. Unbeknownst to anyone else, Daly possesses a personal modification of the Infinity game program, where he is able to upload sentient digital clones of his co-workers to take out his frustrations upon. In this narrative, Nannette Cole becomes his newest victim after her DNA is used to draw her into the virtual reality. After Daly’s sexist and violent treatment of her and the other crewmates, Nannette inspires a mutiny to escape Daly’s world. In order to help the team carry out the plan, she seduces Daly as a distraction.
- Kinolab
- 2017
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- 9 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Virtual Vindictiveness and Simulated Clones Part II: Daly and Cole
Robert Daly is a programmer at the company Callister, which developed the immersive virtual reality game Infinity and its community for the entertainment of users. Daly is typically seen in the shadow of the co-founder of the company, the charismatic James Walton. Unbeknownst to anyone else, Daly possesses a personal modification of the Infinity game program, where he is able to upload sentient digital clones of his co-workers to take out his frustrations upon. In this narrative, Nannette Cole becomes his newest victim after her DNA is used to draw her into the virtual reality. After Daly’s sexist and violent treatment of her and the other crewmates, Nannette inspires a mutiny to escape Daly’s world. In order to help the team carry out the plan, she seduces Daly as a distraction.
What should the ethical boundaries be in terms of creating digital copies of real-life people to manipulate in virtual realities? How would this alter the perception of autonomy or entitlement? Should the capability to create exact digital likenesses of real people be created for any reason? If so, how should their autonomy be ensured, since they are technically a piece of programming? How can bias, and more specifically the objectification of women, be eliminated in such conceptualisations? Are digital copies of a person entitled to the same rights that their corporeal selves have?
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- 7 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
In a generic post-apocalyptic scenario, Bella and her comrades are relentlessly hunted by dog-like robotic drones which spray small trackers to mark and hunt down their prey. After Bella’s companions are killed, she is able to hold off a short while longer before reaching the inevitable conclusion that she cannot escape.
- Kinolab
- 2017
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- 7 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Robotics and Warfare
In a generic post-apocalyptic scenario, Bella and her comrades are relentlessly hunted by dog-like robotic drones which spray small trackers to mark and hunt down their prey. After Bella’s companions are killed, she is able to hold off a short while longer before reaching the inevitable conclusion that she cannot escape.
What are the potential consequences of using automated drones to carry out tasks, especially robotics used for warfare purposes? What happens if centralized control over robots with a singular purpose fails? How does GPS tracking allow for easier pursuit of innocent victims?
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- 15 min
- Kinolab
- 2019
Danny, Karl, and Theo are a trio of friends who all once lived together. In their adult years, after Danny and Theo have married, Karl gifts Danny with the most recent release of their favorite fighting video game, Striking Vipers X. In this virtual reality simulation, Danny and Karl are able to become their avatars, Lance and Roxette respectively, and feel pain and pleasure in the virtual world through them. After the avatars begin to form an intimate connection within the virtual reality video game, Danny, Theo, and Karl find themselves needing to negotiate new terms of their relationships with one another, struggling to find if connections in the virtual world can coexist with connections in the real world.
- Kinolab
- 2019
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- 15 min
- Kinolab
- 2019
Relationships and Exploration of Identity in Virtual Worlds
Danny, Karl, and Theo are a trio of friends who all once lived together. In their adult years, after Danny and Theo have married, Karl gifts Danny with the most recent release of their favorite fighting video game, Striking Vipers X. In this virtual reality simulation, Danny and Karl are able to become their avatars, Lance and Roxette respectively, and feel pain and pleasure in the virtual world through them. After the avatars begin to form an intimate connection within the virtual reality video game, Danny, Theo, and Karl find themselves needing to negotiate new terms of their relationships with one another, struggling to find if connections in the virtual world can coexist with connections in the real world.
How do virtual reality worlds allow humans to explore aspects of their sexual or gender identities that they may not have the opportunity to discover in the real world? Do the seemingly limitless possibilities for connection with digital technologies and virtual realities innately pose a threat to the landscape of long term relationships? Should concepts such as sex be built into virtual realities? If it is assumed that the reality is fake and the avatars are distinct from their controllers, do Danny’s actions count as infidelity?
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- 7 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Single mother Marie pays to have Arkangel, a brain-computer interface, installed into her daughter Sara. With this implant, Marie is able to not only track Sara’s location at all times, but can also access a feed of the audiovisual data which Sara is experiencing at any moment. Marie also has the power to censor this sensory input, controlling what Sara sees and hiding stressful stimuli from her view. Of course, this eventually has negative impacts on Sara’s psychology and social life.
- Kinolab
- 2017
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- 7 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Marie and Sara Part I: Helicopter Parenting and Child Development
Single mother Marie pays to have Arkangel, a brain-computer interface, installed into her daughter Sara. With this implant, Marie is able to not only track Sara’s location at all times, but can also access a feed of the audiovisual data which Sara is experiencing at any moment. Marie also has the power to censor this sensory input, controlling what Sara sees and hiding stressful stimuli from her view. Of course, this eventually has negative impacts on Sara’s psychology and social life.
Should parents be allowed to use digital technology to censor or filter the world which surrounds their child? How can parental controls decrease exposure and affect development of children? How would this technology negatively impact the pyschology and societal expectations surrounding parenting? Should anyone ever have the power to edit someone’s brain, and thus their perception of reality? In what ways to digital technologies make it easier and harder to shelter children?
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- 14 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Single mother Marie pays to have Arkangel, a brain-computer interface, installed into her daughter Sara. With this implant, Marie is able to not only track Sara’s location at all times, but can also access a feed of the audiovisual data which Sara is experiencing at any moment. After avoiding the system for a long time, Marie brings her Arkangel tablet back out to track and surveil Sara during her teenage years, going so far as to intervene in her love and social lives after watching the feed during intimate and private moments for Sara. Once Sara finds out, she revolts. For further reading, see the narrative “On TikTok, Teens Meme the Safety App Ruining Their Summer”
- Kinolab
- 2017
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- 14 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Marie and Sara Part II: Helicopter Parenting and Young Adult Independence
Single mother Marie pays to have Arkangel, a brain-computer interface, installed into her daughter Sara. With this implant, Marie is able to not only track Sara’s location at all times, but can also access a feed of the audiovisual data which Sara is experiencing at any moment. After avoiding the system for a long time, Marie brings her Arkangel tablet back out to track and surveil Sara during her teenage years, going so far as to intervene in her love and social lives after watching the feed during intimate and private moments for Sara. Once Sara finds out, she revolts. For further reading, see the narrative “On TikTok, Teens Meme the Safety App Ruining Their Summer”
How do technologies that allow parents to surveil and track teenagers prevent these young adults from self-exploration and actualization? Is it possible to design location tracking services that allow for safety without diminishing privacy or autonomy? What would this look like? In what ways do digital technologies make the teenage experience more and less free than it was before the digital age?