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Thursday, May 31 • 2:15pm - 3:15pm
Stranger than Fiction: The Future of Entertainment & Tech

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A lot of the tech we use everyday was fiction before it was fact: satellite communication, cell phones, electronic newspapers and robots all appeared in science fiction stories before they became commonplace in our lives. Writers and filmmakers have typically imagined the future created by tech as being either utopian or dystopian. During periods of rapid tech advancement -- the industrial revolution, the nuclear age, the Internet age -- storytellers seem to create more of the darker stuff. Change is scary.

At the same time, real-world tech is fuelling increasing concerns about privacy, democracy and even human survival. Is the entertainment industry leading us to a dystopian view of the future of tech, or merely holding up a mirror to reflect a reality that’s already unfolding? Does the drama inherent in apocalyptic visions, the projection of our existing fears, just make for more compelling content right now? Or will these visions and fears provide an impetus to create the future of tech as a force for good?
Speakers
avatar for Charlie Brooker

Charlie Brooker

Writer, Producer and Broadcaster
Though he hates the word ‘satirist’, Charlie Brooker has made a career of examining the bizarre and maddening soap opera that is pop culture and politics, and giving us a space to laugh about it. Brooker is a writer, reviewer, columnist and presenter. He is also the creator and... Read More →
avatar for Kate Darling

Kate Darling

Robot ethicist, MIT Media Lab
A leading expert in robot ethics, Dr. Kate Darling is a researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab where she investigates social robotics and conducts experimental studies on human-robot interaction. Darling explores the emotional connection between people... Read More →
avatar for Spike Jonze

Spike Jonze

Writer and director, Her, Being John Malkovich, Where the Wild Things Are
Academy Award winning filmmaker (must always start with a grandiose descriptor), Spike Jonze crosses boundaries between many mediums: feature films (Her, Being John Malkovich, Where the Wild Things Are – it’s always cool to leave one out, and not the one you’d expect), television... Read More →
avatar for Mark Sakamoto

Mark Sakamoto

Executive Vice President, Think Research
A lawyer by training, Mark Sakamoto has enjoyed a rich and varied career, having worked at a national law firm and served as a senior political advisor to a national party leader. He is an author, entrepreneur and investor in digital health and digital media.Mark is the Executive... Read More →

Thursday May 31, 2018 2:15pm - 3:15pm EDT
Stage A @Lot42 41 Ardelt Place, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
  Tech For Good, Headliner