The isolation of 2020 redefined the world’s appetite for binge watching, sending everything from Netflix’s stock to Disney+’s subscriptions...
The isolation of 2020 redefined the world’s appetite for binge watching, sending everything from Netflix’s stock to Disney+’s subscriptions to dizzying heights. For content creators, who have always consumed copious amounts of content as homework, it has posed a different challenge: when do you switch off and start creating?
Creators with discipline have thrived in the pandemic, but for members of my tribe, whose minds have to wander aimlessly for hours before finding inspiration, multiple communication platforms and endless streaming recommendations have been counterproductive. Yet, on this dreary New Year’s Eve, the dancing-robots viral video by US-based robotics behemoth Boston Dynamics and Pixar’s latest movie Soul offered a twisted form of inspiration.
For the past two decades, with the privilege of straddling the worlds of technology and creativity, my unbridled enthusiasm for the possibilities of neuroscience and Artificial Intelligence has given way to acknowledging the dangers of runaway innovation. As I was admiring the dancing robots, the initial sense of awe turned into a queasy feeling about the meaning of being human. Sure, birds of paradise and assorted other species have elaborate routines as their mating rituals, but dance as an artform or medium of storytelling is a uniquely human trait.
