Reflective Encounters

“Cinematic depictions of AI have ranged from the famously homicidal to benevolent, beings above the petty squabbles of human life that operate on another plane of consciousness. But with Machines of Loving Grace, Viktor Schimpf provides an alternate vision, where machine learning takes a uniquely humanistic bent, and where empathy takes as much credence as ruthless efficiency. Schimpf depicts the process of programming as almost akin to parenting, the act of coding replaced by gentle conversation and active listening on both ends.

On an emotional level this feels like a work attuned to our modern concept of self-care, espousing a clear vision of a utopic future: one in which we let machines do the work while we focus on things like mindfulness and stewardship of the earth. This is science fiction, but science fiction in direct conversation with our immediate past, particularly the recent wave of global civil unrest. What we ultimately have is a film that attempts to re-orient our expectations of genre and our current course of technical development: providing a vision of a world where we don’t merely view AI as another tool for the endless pursuit of capital but one for community organisation and social justice.”

— Matthew Chan