Not long after it started streaming on Netflix, Humans in the Loop, the film backed by Kiran Rao, has received the Sloan Distribution Grant from Film Independent. After its theatrical run in the US and fulfilling other eligibility requirements, the film has become eligible to compete in the Oscar category Best Original Screenplay at the 98th Academy Awards. The grant, which hails from Film Independent and the Alfred P Sloan Foundation, is for narrative feature films with technology or science-related characters, stories and/or themes that are getting into their distribution stage. It helps the said films "reach audiences through theatrical and streaming platforms."
In the past, the financial scheme has supported over 850 screenplays, shorts and feature films, which include The Imitation Game, The Man Who Knew Infinity, Hidden Figures, and Oppenheimer. Thanks to the grant, Humans in the Loop director Aranya Sahay and producer Mathivanan Rajendran have become Film Independent Fellows.
Writer-director Aranya's film follows an indigenous woman who works at a data annotation centre at a rural place in India. It explores the inequalities and ethics of modern technology such as machine learning and underscores the importance of lived experiences, cultural knowledge, and empathy.
Speaking about the film's themes, Aranya said, "We are at a cusp with artificial intelligence, and humanity needs to take responsibility for the kind of AI and the kind of future we are building. I’m deeply grateful to Film Independent and the Sloan Foundation for allowing us to take this conversation across the US. Humans in the Loop is about the human heartbeat inside technology, and this grant recognises the people whose labour and stories often remain unseen.
On the other hand, producer Mathivanan shared, “Through Humans in the Loop and our work at the Museum of Imagined Futures, we’ve been creating space for technologists and creatives to rethink how stories about technology are told." He went on to add, “The Sloan Foundation’s support and now the film’s entry into the Oscar race are a validation of Aranya’s screenplay that creatives can help shape the future of tech."
Meanwhile, Film Independent's Fiction Programs' Associate Director Dea Vazquez said, “We are proud to help bring awareness in the US about Humans in the Loop through the Sloan Distribution Grant. The film’s rigorous and deeply human approach to exploring AI and the role of technology in our lives perfectly reflects the mission of the grant.”
Recently, the makers added Misaq Kazimi as an executive producer to the film in order to lead its American distribution plan, which the latest grant is set to support further. Kazimi said, “It is no surprise that Humans in the Loop has received this prestigious grant from a preeminent US film institution, as the film is both timely and relevant globally. We have already begun our impact screenings, hosting a weeklong theatrical showcase in Los Angeles and at UCLA, bringing together filmmakers, academia, and technologists to have interconnected discourse on the film’s pivotal question of how AI is handled by humanity. These conversation-sparker screenings will continue, and anyone interested in the film's themes are invited to help us bring the film to their city.”