The Singularity Institute is requesting donations to support the completion of a documentary on the Singularity by Doug Wolens. Wolens is an experienced filmmaker who filmed Singularity Summit 2006 and 2007. Filming is 80% done, and Doug needs an additional $45,000 to complete the documentary in time for this winter’s film festivals. He has already interviewed figures such as Ray Kurzweil, David Chalmers, and Peter Norvig. Excerpts of the interviews are available on the donations page.

Here’s the blurb for the movie and an explanation of how it helps the Singularity Institute:

“The Singularity” is an investigation into the frontiers of scientific progress. Many important disciplines are coming together to drive this progress – nanotechnology, artificial intelligence, molecular biology, and more. “The Singularity” explores the current boundaries of this research, showing where the trends are leading, and how smashing the intelligence barrier will affect society.

In “The Singularity,” award-winning documentary director Doug Wolens addresses vital questions for all of us: Exactly what is likely within our lifetimes? How are things moving so quickly? Who is working to prepare us for the shifts to come? And what should we be doing?

This isn’t science fiction. It is the future, and it may be here sooner than we think.

SIAI will directly benefit from “The Singularity” documentary because its purpose is to educate mainstream audiences about the profound changes that will occur in our lifetime as we develop powerful technologies. As SIAI’s subjects become understandable to mainstream audiences and the public recognizes the changes that will result from them, SIAI’s leadership role will be strengthened.”

If you support this, perform the old reach-around and bust out the plastic. That way, when you see the movie, you’ll know you supported something highly educational and useful, particularly from a utilitarian perspective.