(THIS ARTICLE IS MACHINE TRANSLATED by Google from Norwegian)
The role of technology in our lives and in the creative (film) process served as both backdrop and narrative in several films during this year's Sundance festival. No wonder, after all, we're writing 2020, and a mobile phone can act as a movie camera. But what role does mobile and other electronic duplicates have in daily life? And what about the consequences of our dependence on these "aids"? Are we able to enjoy the technology while taking care not to use it too much? Two films offer useful insights into how we can achieve a balance.
The Social Dilemma
The Social Dilemma is a movie I went to watch with an agnostic starting point. It seemed interesting enough, but I didn't expect it to make any special impression
.
Soon, however, I was both captivated and engrossed. Jeff Orlowski (Chasing Ice) is directed, and the film is a powerful warning of the dangers of using social media and the risks of a community engagement (or lack of ditto) as a result of the desire for acceptance and the need for affiliation.
The technological innovators recognize that they have created a monster and they want us to
(users) should wake up before it's too late.
The good conversations disappear, and we have had a flurry of fake news. The film also addresses this, and its significance for democracy, presented in a historical line highlighted by the sorcerers of Silicon Valley who created the social media platforms. Even the developer who helped create Facebook's "Like" button is included. The technological innovators acknowledge that they have created a monster, and they want us (the users) to wake up before it's too late. Are we going to do that?
The film is a call to action regarding the many dangers of technology, but it is also a counterpoint to Saudi Runaway , which highlights the changing power of technology.
Saudi Runaway
Saudi Runaway is a brave, life changing German-Swiss film Susanne Regina Meures. It is about Muna, a particular young woman who has had enough of a restrictive life as a woman Saudi-Arabia. She documents her life, often in hiding, using two mobile phones.
Most impressive is Muna's courage to share her story and her willingness to imagine
a completely different life.
The wedding has been arranged and she plans to escape the country on the very wedding night itself. Saudi Runaway appears as a suspense film if for some reason you forget that it is actually about a real person. But you can't forget it, of course – and it is an emotional roller coaster to get through the film, simply because you care about Muna. She is a remarkable woman, who also shows great potential as a storyteller.
There is a lot worth noting about the film, from the film production itself to the footage Muna so fearlessly did and which she sent the director via Dropbox. The most impressive thing, of course, is Munas' courage to share her story and her willingness to imagine a completely different life.
Does the story end well? Watch the movie yourself. You will be surprised and inspired, as we saw it on Sundance became.
Translated by Iril Kolle
