SXSW Q&A with Cast and Crew of 'Ex Machina'

---

1

How long until

we get to his estate?

We've been flying over his

estate for the past two hours.

You're leaving me here?

This is as close as I'm allowed

to get to the building.

What building?

Follow the river.

Got it.

Keep your head down and

get clear of the rotors.

Okay.

Caleb Smith.

Yes.

Please approach the console

and face the screen.

Oh!

Take your keycard.

You may now enter the residence.

Hello?

Hello?

Caleb Smith.

Hey.

Dude!

I've been so looking forward

to this week with you.

Come in. Come on in.

Thanks.

You want something to eat or

drink after your journey?

No. No, thanks, I'm fine.

Sure?

Yeah.

To be honest,

I thought we'd have, uh,

breakfast together, but, um...

I can't really eat anything.

I got the mother of all f***ing hangovers.

Oh, yeah?

Oh, my God, like you

wouldn't even believe.

When I have a heavy night,

I, uh, compensate

the next morning.

Exercise. Anti-oxidants.

You know?

Yeah, sure.

Was it a good party?

Party?

Yeah. Wasn't there a party?

There wasn't a party.

Sorry.

Caleb, I'm just gonna throw this out there,

so it's said, okay?

You're freaked out.

I am? Yeah.

You're freaked out,

by the helicopter

and the mountains and the house,

because it's all

so super-cool.

You're freaked out by me,

to be meeting me,

having this conversation in this room,

at this moment. Right?

And I get that.

I get the moment you're having, but...

Dude, can we just get past that?

Can we just be two guys?

Nathan and Caleb.

Not the whole

employer-employee thing.

Yeah, okay.

Yeah?

Yes. Uh, yeah.

It's good to meet you, Nathan.

It's good to

meet you, too, Caleb.

I guess the first thing I

should do is explain your pass.

Now, it's simple enough.

It opens some doors

and it doesn't open others.

And that just makes everything

easy for you, right?

Uh, yes.

Yeah, 'cause you're like, "Oh,

f***, I'm in someone else's house.

"Can I do this,

can I do that?"

And this card,

it just takes all that worry away.

If you try a door and it stays shut,

okay, it's off-limits.

You try another door and it opens,

then it's for you.

Let's try this one.

I guess it's for you, Caleb.

You like?

Yeah.

It's your room.

You got a bed here.

A bathroom right back here.

Little desk.

Cupboards.

Little fridge.

Cozy, right?

Yeah, this is great.

What?

Sorry?

There's something wrong.

What's wrong?

There's nothing wrong.

It's the windows.

You're thinking

there's no windows.

It's subterranean.

It's not cozy,

it's claustrophobic.

No. No way. I wasn't

thinking that.

I was thinking,

"This is really cool."

Caleb, there's a reason there

are no windows in this room.

There is?

Uh-huh.

This building isn't a house.

It's a research facility.

Buried in these walls

is enough fiber optic cable

to reach the moon and lasso it.

And I want to talk to you

about what I'm researching,

I want to share it with you.

In fact, I want to share it with you

so much, it's eating me up inside.

But there's something I need

you to do for me first.

"Blue Book

non-disclosure agreement."

Hmm.

Take your time.

Read it over.

"The signee agrees

to regular data audit

"with unlimited access,

"to confirm that no disclosure

"of information has taken place

"in public or private forums,

"using any means

of communication,

"including but not limited

"to that which is

disclosed orally

"or in written

or electronic form."

I think I need a lawyer.

It's standard.

It doesn't feel very standard.

Okay, it's not standard.

What can I tell you, Caleb?

You don't have to sign it.

You know, we can spend

the next few days

just shooting pool,

getting drunk together.

Bonding.

And when you discover what you've

missed out on, in about a year,

you're gonna regret it

for the rest of your life.

Good call.

So,

do you know what

the Turing Test is?

Yeah.

I know what the Turing Test is.

It's when a human

interacts with a computer.

And if the human doesn't know

they're interacting

with a computer,

the test is passed.

And what does a pass tell us?

That the computer has

artificial intelligence.

Are you building an AI?

I've already built one.

And over the next few days,

you're gonna be the human

component in a Turing Test.

Holy sh*t. Yeah, that's right, Caleb.

You got it.

Because if that test is passed,

you are dead center

of the greatest scientific

event in the history of man.

If you've created

a conscious machine,

it's not the history of man.

That's the history of gods.

Hello.

Hi.

I'm Caleb.

Hello, Caleb.

Do you have a name?

Yes.

Ava.

I'm pleased to meet you, Ava.

I'm pleased to meet you, too.

I've never met

anyone new before.

Only Nathan.

Then I guess we're both

in quite a similar position.

Haven't you met

lots of new people before?

None like you.

Hmm.

So we need to break the ice.

Do you know what I mean by that?

Yes.

What do I mean?

Overcome initial

social awkwardness.

So let's have a conversation.

Okay.

What would you like to have

a conversation about?

Why don't we start with you telling

me something about yourself?

What would you like to know?

Whatever comes into your head.

Well, you already know my name.

And you can see

that I'm a machine.

Would you like to know how old I am?

Sure.

I'm one.

One what?

One year or one day?

One.

When did you learn

how to speak, Ava?

I always knew how to speak,

and that's strange, isn't it?

Why?

Because language is something

that people acquire.

Well, some people believe

language exists from birth.

And what is learned is the

ability to attach words

and structure to the latent ability.

Do you agree with that?

I don't know.

Will you come back

tomorrow, Caleb?

Yes.

Good.

Oh, man, she's fascinating.

When you talk to her,

you're just...

Through the looking glass.

"Through the looking glass."

Wow.

You're good with words, Caleb.

You're quotable.

Actually, that's

someone else's quote.

You know, I wrote down that

other line you came up with.

The one about how

if I've invented a machine

with consciousness,

I'm not a man, I'm God.

I don't think

that's exactly what I...

I just thought, "F***,

man, that is so good."

When we get to

tell the story. You know?

I turned to Caleb,

and he looked up at me

and he said,

"You're not a man,

you're God."

Yeah, but I didn't say that.

So...

Anyway.

You're impressed.

Yes. Yes.

- Although...

- Although?

There's a qualification

to you being impressed?

No, there's no

qualification to her.

Uh, it's just

in the Turing Test,

the machine should be

hidden from the examiner.

No, no, no, we're way past that.

If I hid Ava from you,

so you just heard her voice,

she would pass for human.

The real test is to show you

that she's a robot

and then see if you still

feel she has consciousness.

Mmm.

Yeah, I think

you're probably right.

Her language abilities,

they're incredible.

The system is stochastic.

Right?

It's non-deterministic.

At first I thought

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes