‘Herstory’ is interesting mostly because you don’t know if the story it presents is real or fake. You get hooked on it from the first bit after various people unveil the life of Adriane Chraïbi in front of you, presenting with great detail her biography. Her importance seems crucial after the complex presentation her father and her friends are giving. She changed the world and people should find out about her story and, most of all, about her invention. The level of information transcends the normal perception in such situations, and we get to be involved in life and the process behind the machine that could literally change the world. The Mindchatcher seems like the answer to all the questions asked and unasked. This machine could have changed the world as we know it, but only if it was on the right hands. Unfortunately, Adriane Chraïbi had other plans, and her invention was never to be used by the public. Her odd life continued in another way, ultimately going through an inter-species combination that could be a perfect ending point to a biography that raised so many questions.

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The film goes so deep inside the story that you get to not only believe it, but also relate to it, and for this reason 'Herstory' looks like a conspiracy too good not to be trusted. Even when the story goes south, there still seems like a bit of truth hidden somewhere in-between the lines, reason why we try to make the whole craziness real in our heads in order to give this story perspective. If it weren’t for a web search of the name, the story would have fooled us to take it for granted. Simon Barletti masterminded a script so well and plausible that it makes you wonder whether the news we always take for granted have someone behind the scenes masterminding the whole story into something that can induce powerful feelings. This short started with the question ‘What is a Mindchatcher?’ and ended with another question – ‘Are we the subjects of a real-life Mindcatcher?’ The possibilities are infinite.

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Written by Vlad A. G