Do you behave better or worse when you’re being watched?
This is a question asked in the 2017 movie The Circle starring EmmaWatson and Tom Hanks, where a big tech firm promotes the idea of complete transparency and making knowledge accessible to the world… by documenting everything.
Mae Holland gets an entry level job at The Circle that has a swanky office with gyms, meditation centre, cool gadgets, social clubs, wellness programs and health plans for you and your family. The company’s core values are sustainability, integrity, respect, and the power of knowledge.
Their inventions are supposed to make the world a better / safer place with innovations such as a tiny, portable device that can serve as a surveillance camera which can be connected to multiple devices, so you don’t miss any detail.
Sounds noble and isn’t too far from reality.
But what if the same camera is plugged on you for the world to watch your every move, all the time. Mae finds herself in a position where her life is on display 24/7, for her family, friends, colleagues, and strangers to watch and scrutinize. And because it’s part of her job, her KRA, she must always be on her best behaviour.
This is when things take a drastic turn, seeming like an episode of Black Mirror.
The film eerily resembles our reality where we’re obsessed with documenting every part of our lives for the world to watch.
Whether it’s recording a Karen’s tantrum, an act of kindness, or simply a nice day with friends.
We all do it. I do it.
We blast our lives on social media for the world to weigh in, but still fight aggressively for our data protection rights. It’s no secret how the big tech companies function and feed our hunger for more content… and these days “everything is content”.
But the question the film raises is where do we draw the line between information, knowledge and entertainment ?
