Film series “Artificial Intelligence in Cinema”: Researchers comment on the perceptions of the dream factory

Artificial intelligence (AI) serves people as a digital assistant, monitors faces and checks creditworthiness. The potential of this technology has fascinated filmmakers since 1927. In recent months, progress has been so tremendous that the question is whether reality has overtaken fiction on the big screen. Starting March 13, the Filmhaus in Saarbrücken, together with the Competence Center for Computer Science and the German-American Institute, will therefore be organizing the film series “KI im Kino”. After each film, a researcher will provide information on the extent to which the film corresponds to current research. Admission is free.

The film series starts with “Ex Machina”, a British film by director Alex Garland from 2015, on Wednesday, March 13 at 18:30 in the “Kino im Filmhaus” on Mainzer Straße.

The film takes place in Norway and London and deals with the question of how machines develop consciousness and what consequences this has for people. Alex Garland’s directorial debut will be followed by a commentary by Stephanie Catani, Professor of Modern German Literature/Media Studies.

The series comprises a total of eight films, most of which were produced in the past decade. It includes the “Morgan Project” from 2016, as well as “Chappie” from 2015, and the now realistic film “Her”. With the animated film “Wreck-It Ralph”, rated for ages six and up, the series also appeals to children, while the film “Robot and Frank” is intended for older audiences. The only outlier in terms of production year is “Blade Runner” by director Ridley Scott. The classic produced in 1992 is shown as the “Director’s Cut”.

“It was important for us to show more recent films that could also attract young people to the cinema,” explains Christel Drawer, who put together this film series together with the Competence Center for Computer Science at Saarland University. The German-American Institute Saarland e.V. is supporting the film series so that all films except the children’s film can be shown in their original version with German subtitles. “We also want to appeal to science fiction fans who may have seen the films before,” says Drawer.

After the film, scientists from Saarland University and the Research Center for Artificial Intelligence will have the opportunity to map out fact and fiction in casual conversation. They will also answer questions from the audience.

Further information:
https://filmhaus.saarbruecken.de/

Questions can be directed to:
Gordon Bolduan
Science communication
Competence Center for Computer Science
Saarland Informatics Campus E1.7
Email: bolduan@mmci.uni-saarland.de
Phone: +49 681 302 70741