The Retro Dodo team grew up watching the Gadget Show. It was one of the most exciting tech shows in the UK through our teens, a show that never failed to keep us glued to the screen to discover the most exciting tech, crazy concepts, and inventions that pushed the boundaries of what we thought was possible. And at the helm, Jason Bradbury, a name you might recognise more recently as one of the judges of the BAFTA Video Games Awards, a children’s author, and now a filmmaker. We’re lucky enough to class Jason as one of our friends these days, and we’re incredibly excited by his new film Ctrl AI Delete.
If you follow Jason, the self-confessed ‘Gadget Show Speccy-Techy’, on social media, then you’ll no doubt have seen him posting about the Kickstarter campaign for the new film he’s created with stand-up comedian and long-time friend Mark Felgate. The campaign is currently 50% backed with 22 days to go, so it needs your help to become a reality. ‘We have the script, most of the cast, and somehow, we’ve managed to borrow a ton of genuine 80s and 90s arcade machines,’ says Jason, ‘we’ve also done some test shoots that you can watch in our promo!’
So what is Ctrl AI Delete all about? Well, for those wanting to get a feel of the film, check out the official description below.
When a global AI program goes haywire, throwing the world into chaos, a group of unlikely heroes, a motley crew of retro gamers attending a gaming expo, must harness the power of their beloved vintage computers and consoles to outsmart the rogue AI. As financial markets collapse, the digital world crashes and society descends into darkness, they embark on a hilarious and nostalgic journey to save the world from technological meltdown. Armed with their outdated technology, they become the last hope for humanity in a world gone retrograde.
We chatted with Jason about the British comedy that encapsulates the magic of the 80s and 90s as well as his thoughts on AI over on the Retrospect Podcast which you can listen back to to get the full feel of the movie. ‘There’s a global blackout run on the banks, chaos on the stock markets. Transportation doesn’t work, anything automated breaks down, trains are crashing, airplanes are falling out of the sky. Our retro gamers, armed with their generator, realise that they might just have what’s required to hack the AI and win the day.‘
The premise of the film sounds amazing, and Jason’s excitement, drive, and vision for the project are positively contagious. ‘We are putting together a brilliant cast,’ writes Jason on the official Kickstarter campaign, ‘and – thanks to our director, Elizabeth Blake Thomas (who for real works in Hollywood) we have a professional cinematic crew lined up. Most importantly we have written a great script with a set of characters and a premise we are confident you’re going to want to get to get behind.’
If you want to see an independent Retro Gaming movie made by a legend in the space come to life, then head over to the Kickstarter campaign now and pledge your support! There are various reward packages available for those wanting to help the film get over the line, as well as receiving Jason’s thanks and praise forevermore!
