ALGORITHMS OF BEAUTY + UNCANNY ME

Algorithms of Beauty

Miléna Trivier / Belgium / 2022 / 22 min

A contemplative film about the boundaryies between natural and technological beauty. Can an AI-generated image recreate the beauty of a flower?

In 1772, artist Mary Delany imitated flowers through decoupage. By pasting together hundreds of paper cuttings, she managed to depict flowers with exquisite botanical precision. Centuries later, a programmer is working to invent an algorithm that can also replicate the patterns and radiance of fauna. With the help of an artificial intelligence, the beauty of plants is recreated down to the smallest detail. The technology is groundbreaking, even though reproducing nature is not new. ‘Algorithms of Beauty’ moves across science and beauty, technology and emotion in its examination of the AI inventions of our time, questioning the limits of our vision. Can we tell the difference between a computer-generated image of a flower and the real thing?

Uncanny Me

Katharina Pethke / Germany / 2022 / 45 min

A young model explores the possibilities and costs of recreating herself as a computer-generated avatar. A glimpse into the future of fashion and visual culture.

German model Lale is considering cloning herself as a virtual character. She can save herself the hard work of being duplicated, while the fashion industry can avoid hiring models, photographers, make-up artists, lighting technicians and so on. Technology has made them obsolete, because now everything can be produced digitally to perfection with the help of a photorealistic avatar. All it takes is a simple body scan. As Lale prepares to duplicate, she explores the legal and moral implications of bringing a virtual clone into the world. Because with liberation comes the risk that your avatar will start living its own autonomous life on the internet.