An Art
- Peter K F Cheung SBS
- May 2, 2023
- 3 min read
FADE IN
Act 1
MONTAGE OF PETER'S ACTIVITIES TODAY
A. Having called to make a dinner reservation, PETER sends a WhatsApp message of the particulars.
B. Peter writes a cheque, inserts it inside an envelope, writes the address and puts on initially a $2 stamp and then a $2.2 stamp.
C. Having posted the letter, Peter goes to an restaurant, orders his soup noodles before taking a seat.
D. Peters takes a call. We hear him talking about land resumption in D.D. 124. Peter then sends a lengthy message to a "Cheung Family" chatgroup.
E. Having checked his appointments in his phone diary, Peter calls the Family Clinic to change the date of a medical appointment.
END MONTAGE
INT. STUDY - 16:30
PETER (V.O.): Now's the time to relax.
On his phone's AI drawing App, Peter types his instructions.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Specifying the details such as the subject, colour, style that I want the App to draw is fun.
Act 2
FLASHBACK
INT. STUDY - 09:30 (Earlier today)
PETER is checking a fax machine.
PETER (V.O.): I've to fax an "Agreed Facts" to the Court within today.
Checking cables and their connections.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The new fax machine has caused my smart wife some headaches.
Surfing the web with his smart phone.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Let me double-check the fax number to be dialed...
Checking small prints.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I expect to secure an agreement with the other side soon.
Ring tones. Peter checks the name of the caller.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Ah, I may be able to execute the job earlier than expected.
Then, Peter engages in a few more telephone conversations.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Aiming to do better, there's quite a lot of work for a fiat counsel to follow through.
Working on his laptop, Peter creates a new draft.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Yesterday, I discovered a software that's compatible with Office. I'm checking if it can beat the standard.
Typing, cutting, pasting and signing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): It's user-friendly and seems to be free for basic use.
We see Peter sending copies of his draft via email.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The recipient can pick and choose, depending on how good he is in signing e-documents.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): While waiting, let me check if my printer is in order.
Having hit "Print", we see a non-responsive printer and on its small screen: "No toner".
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I can go back to chambers to do all that. But I should be able to manage low technology.
Opening the printer, Peter replaces the dual ink cartridges with new ones. After seeing a fleeting message: "Genuine cartridges", Peter sees "Incompatible cartridges" instead.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): OMG, the printer is naughty again.
After Peter's trial and error, the printer prints in the single-cartridge format.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Good enough for the time being.
RETURN TO PRESENT
On Peter's phone screen, we see a realistic drawing appearing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Art is aesthetic, if it has higher dimensions.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But the sophisticated drawing is no longer a drawing, but a symbol of what ArtTech can generate.
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): However, the exquisite care of execution is still with humans, not artificial intelligence.
As Peter checks other images in his smart phone, we see some strange ArtTech output.
Act 3
INT. STUDY - CONTINUOUS
Picking up his swimming gear, Peter is about to leave.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When I'm committed to do something, I follow through on that commitment.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): While there're always things beyond my control, I can focus on my execution.
Peter takes another look of the AI drawing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Even the AI App is constantly learning and improving. To do better is itself an art.
FADE OUT
THE END
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