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Barry Can't Swim – Dance Dance Dance

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There are many nightmarish scenarios posed by the ever-more-real concept of machines becoming sentient, but if they all follow the example of the curious bot at the heart of Dan French's new promo for Barry Can't Swim, I think we'll be alright.

Following a nifty automaton as it discovers joy beyond its programming, Dance Dance Dance balances high tech with lo-fi visuals to create a Stink-produced film that's sweetly compelling.

Controlled by technicians through VR and pre-programmed settings, the pixel-faced protagonist acts as both a fascinating curiosity and a lovely visual metaphor, desperately attempting to connect with humans distracted by tech.

"This video is a bit ironic because the first idea came from discussing the speed at which culture is moving," explains French, "how people are obsessed with phones, and a feeling that technology is taking over... We thought about the underlying feeling of humans losing connection with one another. And then, in comes the robot, who was kind of useless and unable to do basic stuff like lift its arms above its head, or walk without falling over."

"So many people passing by stopped and interacted with it. It gave us real moments of connection and fun while we were shooting (which normally is a huge no-no). And it ended up creating exactly what the video was all about - dancing and connection. And now, let's just say I'm less worried about the robots taking over..."

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