Werner Herzog’s ‘Theater of Thought’ Trailer Explores the Inner Workings of the Mind

Werner Herzog‘s new documentary Theater of Thought, which just had its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, has just received an official trailer. The film follows auteur Herzog, who has directed the acclaimed documentaries Grizzly Man and Cave of Forgotten Dreams as well as the narrative films Nosferatu the Vampyre and Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, as he explores the inner workings of the brain. The filmmaker travels around with scientist Rafael Yuste, and is presented with different research data that explains things about our brains that many people have only ever wondered about. The film is produced by Herzog and Ariel Leon Isacovitch.

The trailer for Theater of Thought begins with Herzog narrating, explaining how in order to learn more about how the brain actually works, he decided to go on an informative road trip to visit different scientists and professionals. Herzog discusses brain-computer interfaces, which he declares will “change the world,” and other scientists pop up to also discuss this technological advancement. By the end of the trailer, Herzog exclaims that he really doesn’t think he understands much of the subject matter that he is documenting, but he can’t help but still be captivated by it. This trailer implies that Theater of Thought will be another thought-provoking documentary from an impressive cinematic voice.

Herzog spoke with Deadline about the game-changing information he learned while filming his innovative new documentary, saying, “There are glorious possibilities, like making the blind to see again. Or people in wheelchairs walking again, all of this [research] moving ahead very quickly… Mind reading. We can read your thoughts, the language that you want to speak, we can read it, telepathy in primitive forms, and on and on. It’s staggering.” The filmmaker continued on about his worries regarding the new information he has learned, adding “What happens if this gets into the wrong hands? What happens if you implant a chip that can read your thoughts, which we can do to a certain degree by now? That’s why I am speaking about the framework of new human rights. It’s understood that there should be freedom of speech. It is considered a human right, but our right of free thought, that we can think and that this should be protected, hasn’t sunk in yet. And the world is completely unprepared for what’s coming.”

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Theater of Thought does not currently have an official release date. Check out the official trailer and synopsis below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9P0nHSKwWMU

“Through the lens of legendary filmmaker Werner Herzog, Theater of Thought takes audiences on a provocative journey into the study of the mind and consciousness, daring us to question whether we truly have autonomy over our thoughts, or if our brains will inevitably become infused with mind-controlling technology in the not so distant future. Gathering insight and predictions from some of the world’s most influential scientists and innovators, Theater of Thought is an exploration of the ethical, and existential, effects that neurotechnology presents in our rapidly advancing world.”