The Mind's Evolution
This experimental film blends AI-assisted philosophical essays with cutting-edge text-to-speech, text-to-image, and text-to-video technology, rendering complex ideas accessible and engaging. In just over an hour, it presents an entire philosophy of mind—including insights into mental illness—through stunning visuals that both inform and captivate. A counter to modern cynicism, this film offers an optimistic, Rousseau-inspired perspective firmly grounded in the science of human evolution and psychiatry.
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John V. WylieDirector
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John V. WylieWriter
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John V. WylieProducer
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Project Type:Experimental
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Runtime:1 hour 12 minutes 44 seconds
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Completion Date:January 9, 2025
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Production Budget:2,000 USD
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Country of Origin:United States, United States
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Country of Filming:United States, United States
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Language:English
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Shooting Format:Digital MP4
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Aspect Ratio:Custom
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
John Wylie holds a BA in History from Yale, an MD from Columbia, and completed a psychiatric residency at Georgetown University. His career started at a maximum-security prison in Maryland, followed by 35 years in the private practice of psychiatry in Washington, DC. During this time, he also served as chair of the department of psychiatry at Sibley Memorial Hospital. He was involved in the early stages of evolutionary psychiatry in the 1980s and has contributed to the field through a clinical handbook on psychiatric treatment, two books on evolutionary psychiatry, and numerous lectures on the subject. Dr. Wylie resides in Olney, Maryland, with his wife, Ann.
This project began around 9/11 when I read EO Wilson’s call for a "new human mythos based on fact"—a quote that now opens the film. Over the years, I wrestled with the idea that humanity’s true story isn’t one of greed and domination but of cooperation, justice, and shared purpose. By the time ChatGPT-4 arrived, these ideas were already fully formed—so when DALL-E-3 emerged, I decided to turn them into images, to make beauty out of truth.
Flowers evolved their beauty to attract pollinators, ensuring their survival. My film is my pollen—broadcasting these ideas in the hope they take root.