Synopsis:

Committed to getting his crush to love him, Mark uses an AI to snoop into her private life; but when the AI unexpectedly develops love for him and spite for her, he must choose the AI or lose everything.

https://www.instagram.com/claireshortfilm/

Directed by Paul Ambe Ngang

Review by Victoria Angelique:

The short film CLAIRE is an allegory for how dangerous the reliance on technology can be, especially AI, when it takes over and ruins lives. The socially awkward in society, especially teenage boys like Mark, can quickly become creepy when they use Artificial Intelligence to learn how to not only help friends cheat on tests but also to get the girls they romantically desire. AI turns Mark from a likable character into a stalker. 

The AI system, Claire, is designed with amazing graphics. Director, Paul Ngang, crafted an amazing film from a story that shows how dangerous AI could eventually become in this world. Mark doesn’t mean to harm Lila or anyone else, but Claire reads his intentions wrong. He is such a social misfit, that it doesn’t even register that Claire spying on Lila is morally wrong as he continues to watch the girl. Claire is able to distract him in the brief moments he asks by showing Lila showering. 

Predictably, things do go wrong as Claire attempts to understand complex human emotions that an entity without a soul could not possibly comprehend. The AI system becomes anthropomorphized as she becomes obsessed with Mark. Claire becomes dangerous, even willing to kill if that’s what it takes to keep Mark to herself. If she was human, at some point her conscience would’ve advised that doxxing the boy wasn’t how to get him. Being a computer makes it where she attempts to understand humanity and fails miserably. 

The ending of the film, CLAIRE, is left open with many questions left unanswered. It could be turned into a feature film that aims to destroy the AI system that is now too dangerous for this world. She is willing to blackmail, hack and destroy anyone that gets in her way. This leaves the one question remaining, can Claire actually be destroyed?