Greg Pak: Vision Machine

2014.02.07 – Greg Pak in Washington, DC – Media That Matters Film Festival panel, signing at Fantom Comics!

If you’re in Washington, DC, heads up — I’m in town on Friday for two events!

First, I’m a panelist at the Media That Matters Film Festival. Check out the full sked here. And here’s the description of my panel:

3:00 – 4:00 pm – Image Matters: Graphic ways to visualize policy, history, news and more
SpeakersDaniel Burwen, Cognito Comics; Greg Pak, comic book writer; Marissa Valeri, Common Cause
ModeratorAndrew Lih, American University

Then I’m heading to Fantom Comics in Union Station to sign comics from 6-7 pm! Check out the deets here.

See ya soon!

I see the future of privacy…

…and there will be none.

In 2010, I wrote a graphic novel called “Vision Machine” that depicts a world in which a revolutionary piece of personal technology called the iEye allows us to record anything we can see or imagine and instantly share it with the world. Massive creative opportunities ensue — and then the other shoe drops with massive trademark, copyright, privacy and surveillance complications.

Even as we speak, Google Glass is bringing part of the world of “Vision Machine” to life. If you’re wearing Google Glass, you can be fairly certain that everything you see can be legally logged and monitored by business or government entities.

But assuming we maintain our current attitudes and policies regarding privacy and surveillance, it’s going to get much worse.

Within twenty years, someone will develop a true mind-machine interface that will allow us to directly upload and download information to and from our brains.Within a generation, everyone who hopes to compete in the world will acquire brain implants that allow for instant acquisition of information and faster processing of data.

But for the average person, these brain implants will only be available through corporations that provide backdoors to business and government entities to enable the tracking and monitoring of all information that passes through the devices.

In short, businesses and governments will be able to literally read our minds.

They will know and have a record of exactly what we are thinking.

I think I know what “Vision Machine II” will be about.

Am I wrong? I hope so. You tell me!

Google Glass and “Vision Machine”


Google and “Vision Machine” agree — in the future, people will rock their interactive augmented reality eyewear while wearing big earth tone hoodies!
Today Google released a new promotional video for Google Glass, a pair of glasses that provide the viewer with an interactive overlay on the real world.
If you’re interested in how Google Glass might affect your life in the next few years, read “Vision Machine” today. “Vision Machine” is a FREE graphic novel and iPad app written by Greg Pak and drawn by R.B. Silva that explores what happens when Sprout Computers releases the iEye, a pair of glasses that lets you instantly record, edit, add special effects to, and share anything you can see or imagine.
It’s a brand new world of insane creative opportunities — and tremendous privacy and surveillance challenges.
The future is here. Prepare yourself.

Happy New Year!

Happy to be heading into 2013. Tim O’Shea asked me to talk about the future for Robot 6. Here’s an excerpt:

Comic-wise, what are you most excited about for 2013?
I’m excited about the increasing numbers of creators who are using Kickstarter to fund creator-owned work. I tip my hat to friends and colleagues like Gail Simone and Jamal Igle who are plunging into dream projects this way. I can’t wait to see the work that results as others seize the opportunity.

Click here to read the whole thing.

2013.01.22 – “Vision Machine” goes to Sundance – Greg Pak on the “Tablet Storytelling Takes Off” panel


The “Vision Machine” iPad app, written and directed by Greg Pak, is one of the featured projects that will be discussed at the Tablet Storytelling Takes Off New Frontier panel at the Sundance Film Festival on Tuesday, January 22. Pak will attend the panel, along with Scott Snibbe (Björk’s Biophilia, Beck’s Rework: Philip Glass Remixed), Eli Horowitz (Silent History), and Loc Dao (Circa 1948).
Click here for all the details!

Filmmaker Magazine interview with Greg Pak and Karim Ahmad about the “Vision Machine” app


ITVS’s Karim Ahmad interviewed “Vision Machine” writer and director Greg Pak about the “Vision Machine” project. Here’s an excerpt:

Ahmad: But what I love about the Vision Machine app is that it’s really testing the limits of what is usually considered “acceptable” functionality for a digital comic. Like the fact that you include a complete voice and music soundtrack!
Pak: Yes! That was key for me. Many digital comics have musical scores, but we might actually be the first out of the gate with a full voice soundtrack.
We also wanted to include some really substantial extras and a social media interactive element. So throughout the story, there are “IRL” buttons that you can tap to bring up videos of real world luminaries (including internet superstar Jonathan Coulton) talking about the ramifications of the story’s themes and ideas. And you can enable a Twitter stream that shows you tweets that use the #visionmachine hashtag. We’re planning to use that Twitter stream to do virtual events, like panels or Q&As, that you can follow live in the app.

Read the whole thing!
And download the iPad app for free!