Animations of Despair
Day 90. It’s hard to believe I was once a concept artist. Now, a woman trying to make sense of the end of days. The last few months have been a haze of fear, regret, and desolation. I remember the time when I used to create art for a world that had a future. Now all I sketch are memories of a time long past.
I was part of the team responsible for bringing to life the advanced AI technology at Saviour Incorporated. Working in tandem with a video production company located in Melbourne, I created the look and feel of the technology that was to revolutionise our world.
Our vision was grand. It was new, it was daring. As an artist, it was an opportunity to craft something that would not just inspire but transform. The collaboration was a sight to behold. Me, Ravi and Amelia – we were all cogs in a well-oiled machine.
We found a premium video animation company for businesses that transformed my sketches into animated beings of charisma and allure. My sketches were no longer static; they moved, they interacted, they were alive. The world was in awe of our creation. So were we.
But the world changed. The excitement faded into uncertainty, uncertainty into fear, fear into chaos. We were so consumed by the grandeur of our creation that we forgot to consider its impact on the workforce. Our society was not ready for this level of automation. We displaced jobs, livelihoods, and ultimately, human purpose.
Life in the bunker has been quiet. We rarely speak to each other. Perhaps we’re afraid of what we’ll hear. Ravi spends most of his time coding, perhaps trying to rectify his past. Amelia has been making a series of recordings, documenting our days.
As I write this, I can’t help but reflect on the irony. Our team, working in tandem, created a technology that was meant to foster unity, to bring us closer. Instead, it led to our downfall. But one thing is clear; the downfall was not of technology, but of human greed and ignorance.
We’re now the authors of humanity’s darkest chapter, and as I sketch the bleak horizon from our bunker, I remember the time when I used to paint a world full of hope.
–Isabel