Technology has become an integral part of our existence to such a profound extent that it is almost impossible to conceive our daily routines without devices. But to what extent does this dependence exacerbate our weaknesses? In many ways, ‘The Silver Lining‘ takes those gloomy prophecies promoted by the great pessimists of sci-fi literature and gives us a harrowing insight into an impending disaster. Of course, director Mikey Altoft is fully aware of this, but despite pre-existing narrative patterns, his project is never for a moment a predictable experience. We are invited into a universe very similar to the one we live in today, a society faced with a revolutionary invention that will completely change the way people will communicate with each other. But such a revolution is not without consequences, and what follows becomes a race against the clock where social critique is underpinned by a thriller-like narrative dynamism. Basically, starting from the conformation of a consumerist society for which manipulation through marketing leads to a form of generalized lobotomy in order to sell spectacular and “necessary” technological innovations, the short film explores with a trenchant lucidity the risk of losing one’s own integrity.
The classic struggle between Good and Evil is playing out once again: on one side are the large corporations that prioritize profits over empathy, and on the other are the victims of these ambitions, whose voices are often suppressed when they try to speak the truth. In a world familiar with fake news or post-truths, such a conflict has already become the norm. In this way, Mikey Altoft’s short film offers not mere speculation but an alternative to traditional journalism, addressing today’s reality where corporations with technological monopolies hold significant power. Thus, the director employs several techniques that rely heavily on the impact of the media on individuals, while the whole construct mostly has the look of a docufiction. Certainly, what the current form of the short film gives us is not really a complete narrative, but this is not necessarily a risk of the artistic vision. On the contrary, ‘The Silver Lining’ has convinced us of the depth of its approach, while at the same time giving us the certainty of an ambitious project whose potential can be successfully exploited by the artistic team that has already proven its professionalism.
For the complexity and professionalism with which it illustrates an uncomfortably topical subject, ‘The Silver Lining’ was awarded with the Film of the Month distinction in the October 2024 edition of TMFF.
