Disconnect Me

We are all becoming more and more addicted to technology, particularly our smartphones. Whilst the advancements in technology has led to enormous positive outcomes, the reliance on our smartphone has had a significant impact on our overall mental health and well-being – in particularly teenagers and young children. We want to address the impacts, both positive and negative, of the smartphone; and provide the community with a better understanding of how technology is impacting our mental health and well-being. The intention being to investigate and highlight the ways that we may be able to engage in a healthy balance with these devices – for ourselves and those around us.

To encourage the community to use technology to serve them, not control them
To encourage the community to use social media more sparingly and to provide them with tools which will allow them to use social media in a way that it serves them not controls them
To encourage a discussion about the possibility of regulating social media for children.
To encourage a discussion about regulating the development of AI – in particular Lethal Autonomous Weapons.

People of all ages and all walks of life are becoming more and more addicted to technology, particularly their smartphones. Whilst the advancements in technology has led to enormous positive outcomes, the reliance on our smartphone has had a significant impact on our overall mental health and well-being – in particularly teenagers and young children. This film seeks to provide some insights relating to our reliance on technology and provide some solutions which we hope will encourage sincere and productive discourse within communities and in particular, between parents and children. The film seeks to provide the community with tools on how best to use technology so it serves us not controls us.

We have a variety of strategies in place to access our audiences:

1. Hoyts have programmed the film into their national high school edcuational program
2. Palace Nova Adelaide have programmed the film into their high school educational program.
3. NGOs such as Digii Social are getting behind the film. We are waiting to hear from about 5 other NGOs
4. We are in early discussions with the NSW state government
5. Inner West Council have gotten behind the film.
6. ALex Lykos has a strong connection with the Greek community and has several channels within the community for impact and outreach.

The documentary features an interactive element where audiences are not only asked to reflect upon their own behaviours regarding use of technology and social media – and how might they be able to improve this for the better; but they are also encouraged to vote (via QR codes, using their phones) in real time during the running of the film. Audiences are provided a website address at the conclusion of the screening, where they can visit and see the (growing) results of the data collection on certain tech and social media issues. Audiences can continue to track said data, and in the process, continue considering their own usage and effects, and that of others – with intention of being provoked to put into action changes for the positive.

All throughout the duration of the film, audiences are asked to consider the impact of their tech and social media usage on those around them – in particular, their loved ones – and look to creating a more human to human ‘connected’ lifestyle.