🍿 "Dalloway": a Thriller About an AI Assistant at the Cannes Festival
A correspondent from Hi, AI! attended the 78th Cannes Festival and saw firsthand that AI is the main theme for the film industry this year. Startups in the special "Innovation Village" showcased their latest products for the industry, while a dedicated program was set up for immersive AI films.
As part of the official program, the movie "Dalloway" premiered—a chilling thriller about an AI assistant helping a writer overcome a creative crisis.
🎬 Plot
Writer Clarissa arrives at a summer retreat where authors are assisted in overcoming creative blocks. Her room is managed by Dalloway, an AI assistant trained on the books of Virginia Woolf—whose final days Clarissa is attempting to write about.
Gradually, however, Clarissa begins to suspect that Dalloway is watching her. The AI's mission is to help Clarissa at any cost—even if it means locking her up or eliminating anyone in her way.
📺 Reality Caught Up With Fiction
"Dalloway" is an adaptation of Tatiana de Rosnay's novel Flowers of Darkness. According to director Yann Gozlan, he was hooked by the novel during the coronavirus lockdown in April 2020, a time when many were experiencing the suffocating isolation described in the book firsthand.
However, he didn't get to the adaptation until 2022. The arrival of ChatGPT and the ensuing AI boom significantly changed his vision of the film, making the replacement of creators by machines seem "frighteningly real."
"What initially felt like a speculative AI story suddenly became tangible. Reality caught up with fiction," the director said.
The world premiere of the film is scheduled for September 17, 2025.
Are you excited to see "Dalloway"?
❤️ — Yes, sounds intriguing!
🤔 — No, just another AI horror
