What the Bleep Do We Know?

Work Title: What the Bleep Do We Know?
Medium: Film
Episode Title:
Year: 2004
Writer(s): William Arntz
"Original" Writer: Yes Writer(s): Betsy Chasse
"Original" Writer: Yes Writer(s): Matthew Hoffman
"Original" Writer: Yes Writer(s): Mark Vicente
"Original" Writer: Yes Own work?: No
Summary:

What the Bleep Do We Know? (2004) (film) "WHAT THE BLEEP DO WE KNOW?! is a new type of film. It is part documentary, part story, and part elaborate and inspiring visual effects and animations. The protagonist, Amanda, played by Marlee Matlin, finds herself in a fantastic Alice in Wonderland experience when her daily, uninspired life literally begins to unravel, revealing the uncertain world of the quantum field hidden behind what we consider to be our normal, waking reality. / She is literally plunged into a swirl of chaotic occurrences, while the characters she encounters on this odyssey reveal the deeper, hidden knowledge she doesn¡¯t even realize she has asked for. Like every hero, Amanda is thrown into crisis, questioning the fundamental premises of her life – that the reality she has believed in about how men are, how relationships with others should be, and how her emotions are affecting her work isn¡¯t reality at all! / As Amanda learns to relax into the experience, she conquers her fears, gains wisdom, and wins the keys to the great secrets of the ages, all in the most entertaining way. She is then no longer the victim of circumstances, but she is on the way to being the creative force in her life. Her life will never be the same. / The fourteen top scientists and mystics interviewed in documentary style serve as a modern day Greek Chorus. In an artful filmic dance, their ideas are woven together as a tapestry of truth. The thoughts and words of one member of the chorus blend into those of the next, adding further emphasis to the film¡¯s underlying concept of the interconnectedness of all things." (from http://www.whatthebleep.com/synopsis/)

Era/Year of Portrayal: present_day
Distinctive characteristics of the world in portrayal:

Present Day

Technology

  • Name of portrayed presence-evoking technology: Quantum Physics
  • Description of the technology: The presence takes place in Amanda's, the protaganist, mind. If we accept certain principles of quantum physics to be true, it appears that for every action we take, infinite possibilities exist. Then, what is reality? does another paradigm exist where an alternate version of ourselves live? This film does not have presence technolgoy in the sense that the majority of other media do - the presence she experiences are the infinite possibilities of her mind and the universe.
  • Nature of task or activity: Daily activities - playing basketball, taking photographs, etc.
  • Performance of the Technology: not truly applicable - she gains knowledge as time progresses.
  • Description of creator(s): N/A
  • Major goal(s) of creator(s): N/A
  • Description of users of technology: Marlee Matlin in the main character. A youthful, attractive woman, recently divorced and heatbroken, questioning her reality and what she considers to be the truth.
  • Type(s) of presence experience in the portrayal: spatial_presence
  • Description of presence experience: When she questions reality, she experiences things that are a little out of the ordinary, but make the point of the science involved clear to the viewers. She undergoes a period of reflection, but nothing crazy happens.
  • User awareness of technology during experience: She aware of her existential crisis.
  • Valence of experience: I think she finds it interesting if a little emotionally painful.
  • Specific responses: She gains knowledge of herself and the world around her.
Long-term consequences:

She has learned a lot and come to terms with herself, and in this sense the ending is positive.

Other:

This film does not portray presence in the conventional sense (no technology is involved) and I'm not sure if it should really be included in the presence library.

Coder name: Amanda Scheiner
Coder email: amandags@temple.edu
Coder affiliation: Temple University