Download A Film by Allison de Fren

A Surprisingly Human Look at Artificial Love
A Film by Allison de Fren
www.mechanicalbridemovie.com
Narrated by Julie Newmar
1629 Rodney Drive, #2, Los Angeles, CA 90027
Tel 323-663-7080/www.mechanicalbridemovie.com
[email protected]
Synopsis
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The desire to bring to life the perfect artificial woman is as old as
Pygmalion, but new technologies are making its realization ever more likely.
Limning the border between fantasy and reality, this provocative and eyeopening documentary journeys from the outer limits of science fiction—
visiting classic scenes of fembots in film and television—to the state of the
art in artificial companions—from life-sized silicone love dolls to humanoid
robots.
At its heart are the stories of men who keep the dream of artificial love
alive: Davecat, the goth doll owner who likes nothing better than taking his
silicone girlfriend to the cemetery; Slade, the “Realdoll Doctor” who runs a
“hospital” for broken love dolls; Chris, the robot builder whose business
plans include offering replacement spouses to bereft widowers; Michael, the
German “Creator,” a self-described mad scientist attempting to build the
most advanced sexual android in the world; Sorayama, the well-known
Japanese artist whose “sexy robot and gynoid” pin-ups have graced
numerous walls and rock album covers; and others, both strange and
strangely familiar.
Narrated by screen icon and former television android Julie Newmar, THE
MECHANICAL BRIDE is a smart, funny, and deeply human look at the
"cluster image of sex, technology, and death" on which media scholar
Marshall McLuhan commented over a half century ago in his book of the
same name.
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The Filmmakers
Allison de Fren
Director / Producer / Editor
Allison de Fren is a media maker and scholar based in Los Angeles, who divides her time
between creating, writing, and teaching about media, gender, and technology. While she
has always been fascinated with dolls, puppets, mannequins, and robots, her interest in
men who build artificial women was sparked in her former life as an interactive digital
designer, while working among predominantly male roboticists at a future technology
“think tank” in Silicon Valley. It eventually led to her award-winning documentary short
on robot fetishists, A.S.F.R. (alt.sex.fetish.robots), which in turn gave birth to
THE MECHANICAL BRIDE (her first feature). She holds a masters degree from
the Interactive Telecommunications Program at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and a
doctorate from USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, and has been awarded fellowships from
the Annenberg Foundation, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Cagney & Lacey
Foundation, and the American Association of University Women. She is an Assistant
Professor of Media Arts & Culture at Occidental College in Los Angeles.
C. Grant Mitchell
Producer / Cinematographer
C. Grant Mitchell has written, directed, and produced numerous short- and long-form
documentaries, directed the western drama THE PAVILION (starring Craig Sheffer,
Patsy Kensit and Richard Chamberlain), and co-created the reality series MTV
Burned. After graduating from The University of Texas at Austin with a degree in
Radio/TV/Film and later completing a Directing Fellowship at The American Film
Institute, he and his producing partner embraced early the burgeoning democratization
of filmmaking with an experiment dubbed SpyWorm, which fostered the creation of
countless 5-minute documentary shorts by independent filmmakers. He and his wife,
Tiziana, are currently the owners of Aesthesia Studios, a complex of photographic
stages, event spaces and creative suites located on the west side of Los Angeles. He is
also president of a closely held family corporation, overseeing a portfolio of commercial
real estate, development and hotels among other assets.
[email protected]
Julie Newmar
Narrator
Julie Newmar is an American actress, dancer, and singer, who has displayed her multiple
talents on stage, film, and television, since landing her first role on Broadway at age 19.
Her statuesque frame and unearthly beauty have helped earn her a long series of largerthan-life roles. Early in her career, she was cast as a "dancer-assassin" in SLAVES OF
BABYLON, the gold-clad “gilded girl” in the film SERPENT OF THE NILE and
the leggy "Stupefyin' Jones" in the Broadway musical LI’L ABNER, which she reprised
for the 1959 film. She has made numerous television appearances over the years, playing
everything from an Indian princess on F TROOP and double agent on GET SMART
to the devil on THE TWILIGHT ZONE and a cat magically transformed into a
human on BEWITCHED. She is, perhaps, best known for her recurring role as
Catwoman, the “purrfect” villainess in the 1960s TV series BATMAN. Many,
however, also remember her fondly as "Rhoda the Robot" in the science fiction sitcom
MY LIVING DOLL (1964–1965). Designed as a prototype robot for the U.S. Air
Force, Rhoda—otherwise known as AF709—winds up in the hands of Air Force
psychologist Bob McDonald (Bob Cummings), who tries to teach her how to be the
“perfect woman” while keeping her true identity a secret. Now a cult classic, MY
LIVING DOLL is, according to The Random House Historical Dictionary of American
Slang, the source of the popular phrase “Does not compute!”
Rich Ragsdale
Composer
Co-founder of KNR Productions, Rich Ragsdale began as a composer for film
(EDMOND, EIGHT LEGGED FREAKS), television (KING OF QUEENS,
ACCORDING TO JIM, WILL AND GRACE), and video games (ALIENS VS.
PREDATOR, NO ONE LIVES FOREVER). In 2003, Rich crossed over into the
directing realm on shorts (INTO SOMETHING RICH AND STRANGE),
features (THE CURSE OF EL CHARRO), and numerous music videos, however,
he continues to compose award-winning scores for feature films (BIG RIVER MAN,
THE NICKEL CHILDREN, THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN). His handbuilt, highly stylized approach to both music and visuals have won him a solid base of
accolades and admirers. Lending his sound design, editorial and production skills to
KNR’s first feature, PHANTOM LOVE, Rich has also solidified his role as a
producer.
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CREDITS
DIRECTOR
PRODUCER
CINEMATOGRAPHER
EDITOR
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
ALLISON DE FREN
ALLISON DE FREN, C. GRANT MITCHELL
C. GRANT MITCHELL, ANDREW SYDER
ALLISON DE FREN, P.J. WOLFF
TIFFANY NAIMAN
MUSIC COMPOSITION
RICH RAGSDALE
OPENING SEQUENCE
ROMULUS AGIU
SOUND DESIGN
GREG CONWAY
ON-LINE EDITOR
STEVE SWERSKY
U.S.A. – 2012 – 76 MINS
Exhibition Formats: HDCAM, DigiBeta, BetaSP
4.3 Aspect Ratio – In English
© Allison de Fren/The Mechanical Bride
[email protected]/WWW.MECHANICALBRIDEMOVIE.COM