The One With Tom Cruise

Sydney Skybetter interviews John Underkoffler, the Science and Technology Advisor for the 2002 movie Minority Report. We talk about how the infamous computer gesture scene that made John famous led to the founding of Oblong Industries, a company that tried to make Minority Report’s speculative interfaces a reality.

See featured guests, read the transcript, and more in our archives at https://www.are.na/choreographicinterfaces/dwr-ep-3-the-one-with-tom-cruise

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Key Takeaways from Episode 3:

1. John Underkoffler developed the gestural interface in “Minority Report” by studying various gestural systems, including sign language.

2. Underkoffler formed Oblong Industries to bring the technology from the movie into reality and make it available for commercial use.

3. While Underkoffler has worked with various industries, he has drawn a line at directly participating in the development of weapons systems.

4. The gestural interface in Minority Report has had a significant impact on the film industry, academia, and defense industry.

The Dances with Robots Team Host: Sydney Skybetter Co-Host & Executive Producer: Ariane Michaud Archivist and Web Designer: Kate Gow Podcasting Consultant: Megan Hall Accessibility Consultant: Laurel Lawson Music: Kamala Sankaram Audio Production Consultant: Jim Moses Assistant Editor: Andrew Zukoski Student Associate: Rishika Kartik

About CRCI: The Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces (CRCI) explores the braid of choreography, computation and surveillance through an interdisciplinary lens. Find out more at www.choreographicinterfaces.org

Brown University's Department of Theatre Arts & Performance Studies' Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces thanks the Marshall Woods Lectureships Foundation of Fine Arts, the Brown Arts Institute, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for their generous support of this project.

The Brown Arts Institute and the Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies are part of the Perelman Arts District.