The Human Factor
IT WAS THE LATE, great Freddie Mercury who famously asked, “Who wants to live forever?” Prolific Toronto filmmaker Ann Shin’s latest documentary provocatively tries to answer this quandary and asks questions of her own. A.rtificial I.mmortality dives into the world of transhumanism, where people seek to live forever in a digital state. They continue to live via robotics or on-screen avatars long after their flesh decomposes. The film, this year’s Hot Docs opening night selection, is a fittingly if frustratingly virtual affair as the pandemic continues to affect in-person screenings.
Such an honour should come as no surprise. Shin frequently explores complex and nuanced topics, from 2012’s The Defector: Escape from North Korea to her Oscar-shortlisted 2015 short My Enemy, My Brother and 2017 feature of the same name about
