Movie inspiration with design (diegetic prototypes)

Back to the Future II (1989). Image credit: Universal Studios.

Still waiting on that hoverboard…

Self-lacing shoes from Back to the Future II (1989) are a great example of a diegetic prototype (fictional technology). They didn't exist yet, the self-lacing feature was accomplished by a person beneath the floor pulling the laces tight. But the movie did something important: it made people want self-lacing shoes.

For decades people asked for them. And decades passed before a working prototype could be developed and then several more years passed for technology to advance enough to make these shoes sellable. 

Artificial Intelligence, AR/VR/XR, and robotics are all areas that are rapidly developing. They are also areas that are being inspired by movies. 

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). Image credit: Warner Bros. Studio.

Ai may be the most obvious example. Hal, from 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), comes to mind when AI is mentioned. So does The Terminator (1984) and Blade Runner (1982). It's impossible to not consider the threat to humanity that Ai poses as depicted in movies.

Ready Player One (2018). Image credit: Warner Bros. Studio.

AR/VR/XR featured in Ready Player One (2018) is a great example of potential immersive and interactive experiences. Tron (1982) and Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991) were good earlier precedents. 

Wall-E (2008). Image credit: Pixar Animations Studio.

WALL-E (2008), Blade Runner (1982) and any Star Wars film have shown us the potential for robots to be both helpful and dangerous. 

More often than not, movies are made to be entertaining. But it's a perfect medium to inspire new ways of thinking and living. Life inspires art, the other way around is just as true.