Thanks to Skytram for this great review of the film:

by Liz Tramer

What would you do if I could tell you that I knew your mood on January 1, 2003, or your wife’s maiden name? What about where your parent’s lived, your food allergy or your personality type? You might think that this “big brother” society doesn’t exist, or since we’ve never met, I can’t possibly know that information. You’d be dead wrong. Erasing David proves without a reasonable doubt that we currently live in an Orwellian world, and most people are unknowing participants. When filmmaker David Bond received a government letter stating that his, and millions of others, data had been lost, including his name, birth date and bank details he was taken aback.David became curious about just how much personal information was available to the public. He decided to try and go off the grid for 30 days. His journey for privacy has astounding implications that will affect the way you conduct your everyday life.

When David received a generic letter about the loss of his “identity,” he began to wonder just how much information had been collected about him and how that information was obtained. His research led to a shocking discovery. There was a mountain of information on him. His moods were gauged on days by orders he’d placed on Amazon or from entries on the Internet. David wondered if so much data had been collected on his past activities, how easy would it be to track his future movements.

It wasn’t enough to just disappear; he wanted to know if he could be found. For this reason, he hired two private detectives to try and locate him once he tried to become lost among the crowd. David discussed the project with his pregnant wife and tried to convince her that this endeavor was being done both for their family’s future and to ensure their child’s safety. Once he had all parties on board, the race was on. Roles had been assigned: the detectives were the hunters and David became the hunted.

He snuck out of his home in the middle of the night and began his journey. Along the way, he realized that his phone, e-mail and credit card information all left a trail. The more time he spent around others, the greater the likelihood of information being revealed. Even a visit to his family and the locations he would consider safe, became places of discovery.

As the film progresses, David becomes more paranoid and incredibly isolated, leaving viewers wondering if the cost of privacy needs to be complete isolation. “At the time (of the experiment), I barely slept. I began to have paranoid thoughts about everybody I met or even passed in the street. I wondered if people were agents of the Private Investigators. I even began to wonder if my producer (and great friend) Ashley had betrayed me in order to make the film turn out a certain way,” David said.

As David faced loneliness and despair, the private investigators were able to gather birth certificate, marriage licenses, photos, and childhood information, and compile an accurate and revealing story of David’s life and personality. Through the public information the investigators gathered, for al intents and purposes, they were able to transform into David Bond when necessary.

Erasing David is a riveting game of cat and mouse. Director David Bond’s quest for anonymity reveals to viewers how much of your information is public, and the frightening future implications. Bond said that after completing the project he “routinely questions exchanges of data and information that most people don’t notice.” After watching the film, you will never look at filling out a form or surfing the Web the same way.

Immediately following its premiere at SXSW at 8 p.m. on March 12, Erasing David will be available for online rental across the U.S. for the duration of the festival. For more information, or to watch the video online, visit http://cineticfilmbuff.com/slate/erasing-david.

Thanks to the guys at movietainment.net for this great review.

Erasing David – You think you are being watched living in the United States. Well, the United Kingdom is the third highest surveillance state in the world and it is home to David Bond. As an experiment, David wanted to test the waters and see where his paper footprints say about him. What could bills and purchase habits online provide for the government or any interested party in tracking him down? So for a month he decided to investigate by leaving his life behind and dare a pair of experts to find him. Erasing David might begin like a Spurlockian exercise, but the discoveries are far more chilling than the fat and sugar intake of fast food. Despite the stakes being little more than a game between this particular mouse and cats, Bond’s film – a real-lifeRunning Man for those familiar with Stephen King’s (aka Richard Bachman’s) original story – still evolves into a thriller of some magnitude as our own paranoia of a superhighway becoming an invisible peeper into our private worlds comes front and center. Many of us still walked into a McDonald’s at some point, but we may think twice the next time the convenience of our daily lives might be making it opportune for the many Big Brothers out there to know more than we care about us.

by Charlotte

Erasing David is showing at next week’s SXSW and I can’t recommend it enough.

Filmmaker David Bond grew increasingly worried about how much information is held on us by organisations and the government and took the gutsy step of trying to go off the map for a month. He hired a team of private investigators to track him down and the film follows this journey. As someone living in Britain it’s a terrifying watch, especially in scenes where David manages to get hold of all the data held on him by communications companies and online stores. The film itself is thrilling, funny and although scary, highly entertaining.

Erasing David is one of the best films I’ve seen so far this year, and you should definitely check it out.

There are details below the jump of where and when you can see it.

Official Synopsis:

David Bond lives in one of the most intrusive surveillance states in the world. He decides to find out how much private companies and the government know about him by putting himself under surveillance and attempting to disappear – a decision that changes his life forever. Leaving his pregnant wife and young child behind, he is tracked across the database state on a chilling journey that forces him to contemplate the meaning of privacy – and the loss of it.

Once the bastion of freedom and civil liberties, the UK is now one of the most advanced surveillance societies in the world – ranked third after Russia and China. The average UK adult is now registered on over 700 databases and is caught daily on one of the 4 million CCTV cameras located on nearly every street corner in the country. Increasingly monitored, citizens are being turned into suspects. But if you’ve got nothing to hide, surely there’s nothing to fear?

When David receives a letter informing him that his daughter Ivy is among 25 million residents whose details have been lost by the government’s Child Benefit Office, he begins a journey that will see him hounded across Europe.

David soon discovers some alarming truths about what the government and private companies already know about ordinary citizens. He meets people who have been caught in the crossfire of the database state and have had their lives shattered.

As his concern grows, he makes a life-changing decision. He will leave his pregnant wife and child behind and put himself under surveillance for thirty days. The UK’s top Private Investigators are hired to discover everything they can about him and his family – and track David down as he attempts to vanish. Is it still possible to live a private, anonymous life in the UK?  Or do the state and private companies already know too much about ordinary people?

Forced to contemplate the meaning of privacy – and the loss of it, David’s disturbing journey leaves him with no doubt that although he has nothing to hide, he certainly has something to fear…

Erasing David is a documentary about privacy, surveillance and the database state.

Erasing David will be available on on iTunes and Amazon VOD during SXSW and will then debut on cable VOD two weeks later via the wonderful people at Cinetic.

For those in the UK it’s on release in cinemas from April 29th and will be shown on Channel 4 on the 4th May.

INDIEWIRE BLOG March 10, 2010: “@SXSW: ‘Erasing’ and ‘Crying’ trailers” by Matt Dentler features the film.

@SXSW: ‘Erasing’ and ‘Crying’ trailers
A few days ago, I mentioned two films that we’re launching out of SXSW 2010. If you’re attending SXSW, come check them out, and meet the filmmakers who are coming over from the UK. If you’re not attending SXSW, you will be able to watch Erasing David and Crying With Laughter on iTunes and Amazon VOD.

thanks to net.wars for this great review of the film.

Thanks to the kind people at OUTLOOK on the BBC’s world service for asking David in to talk about the film. Check it out.

Thanks to eFilmCritic for this interview.

SXSW 2010 Interview: “Erasing David” Director David Bond

by David Cornelius The South by Southwest rundown on “Erasing David”: David Bond lives in one of the most intrusive surveillance states in the world. He decides to find out how much private companies and the government know about him by putting himself under surveillance and attempting to disappear – a decision that changes his life forever. Leaving his pregnant wife and young child behind, he is tracked across the database state by two ruthless private investigators, on a chilling journey that forces him to contemplate the meaning of privacy – and the loss of it. Just what is “Erasing David”? “Erasing David” is a feature documentary. I wanted to ask how much of our personal information is floating around in government and corporate databases? To find out, I went on the run for a month and set two of the world’s top private investigators the task of tracking me down, using only publicly available data. What inspired you to attempt this challenge – and document it? When my daughter was a small baby, a letter arrived from the UK government. It was an apology – they had lost her and my data on a CD (it included her name, date of birth, address and my bank details). It really spooked me and I started noticing the growing number of press stories about the database state. I read some research from the London School of Economics that said that the UK is one of the three most intrusive surveillance states in the world. That’s when I decided it was time to make the film. I wanted to know how much private companies and the government know about me by putting myself under surveillance and attempting to disappear. I guess saw it as an adventure which I hoped would make a point. What I didn’t realise was that the experience would be profoundly unsettling and transformative. There’s a “chase movie” vibe to this whole thing. Did you plan from the start on taking this approach, or was the suspense an unexpected result of the challenge? We were pretty sure that given we had a hunter and a quarry, there would be some chase-driven tension in the final film. That said, our initial plan was that the chase element would be a relatively small segment of the film and that there would be much more discussion of the issues. In the edit, we discovered that watching a real-life chase is really compelling, so we went with more of it! I was really surprised at the effect that the challenge had on me. When I look at the film now and see myself looking pale and gaunt it takes be back to how frightening it was at the time. There’s a good reason why people use the phrase “he has a hunted look” – I really had a hunted look! One thing I noticed was that for the whole time I was running away, I had a really stiff neck. A doctor told me that this is a common symptom if you are constantly in “flight” mode. Basically it is your body telling you to look behind you! So at the time, I barely slept, I began to have paranoid thoughts about everybody I met or even passed in the street. I wondered if people were agents of the Private Investigators. I even began to wonder if my producer (and great friend) Ashley had betrayed me in order to make the film turn out a certain way (he hadn’t, by the way, and he’s forgiven me for thinking that!). By the end I had started talking to myself and was showing signs of deepening paranoia. The really freaky thing was that this didn’t just stop after the chase. For a good few weeks afterwards I found it really hard to sleep and settling back into family life was much harder than I thought it would be. The long term effect of making the film (it is over a year now) has been the most profound. I routinely question exchanges of data and information that most people don’t notice. This can be a pain – but it is also really liberating: I better understand the Faustian pact we have with governments and corporations. And I am resolved to fight my and my family’s corner when it comes to letting others learn about, profile and map us. Why did you decide to place yourself at the center of the story instead of just staying home and working on a simpler “talking head” style documentary? I love “talking head” documentaries, and I think we could have treated the issues that way. Sometimes, though, I wonder whether people who are not into the issue can struggle with such a treatment. I wanted people who are really not worried about the database state to enjoy the film and for it to draw them into the issues. To make that work, we needed a strong personal story that highlights the boundary between individual and state. I was already into the debate, I had a young family, I was cheap to hire: what can I say, I gave myself the job… Is that nepotism? Just how hard it is to film yourself while simultaneously trying to remain unnoticeable? I tried to look like a terrorist. I mean a tourist. I had a small HD camera that looked like a tourist camera and I basically hid behind it. It should work fine, but then the paranoid UK government introduced a law so now anyone taking a photograph of a police officer or certain types of building can be deemed to have committed a criminal offence, so you do have to be really careful with the “tourist” cover. There is definitely something paradoxical in the film. I’m trying to hide – to erase myself – whilst simultaneously filming myself and then screening the results. I like the paradox though. I think it reflects what we all feel – that it would be great to be recognised, but also great not to be… What got you started making movies? I’m colour-blind and I made a short film called “Lions are Green” about the experience of seeing the world differently. Colour-blind people may well see the world the same as other colour-blind people – but because they are in the minority, no language develops to describe how it looks. That’s how I got started and I think it’s the same challenge of how to express a minority feeling that keeps me going. Any lessons learned while making this movie? Ask and it might happen. We asked Michael Nyman to do the music. It turned out he’s a privacy campaigner and he said yes. Are you nervous about coming to South by Southwest? This is Erasing David’s US premiere and I’m thrilled that it is happening at SXSW. I’ve wanted to come to the festival for years. My friends are really jealous that I’m attending. So, yes, nervous but really excited. What’s next for you? We’re developing various ideas at the moment. The linking theme is how the individual relates to the group – and how the group shapes the individual. That’s what interests me. Watch this space! Finish this sentence: If I weren’t a filmmaker, I’d probably be… …sorry, does not compute. Beatles or Stones? Beatles. In ten words or less, convince the average moviegoer to watch your film. Erasing David: thriller documentary. You’re in data danger. Be afraid. “Erasing David” has its U.S. premiere as part of the SX Global series. It screens at 8:00 PM March 12 and 11:00 AM March 16.

Thanks to The Hollywood Reporter for this article.

Filmbuff to offer SXSW premieres on VOD

Two movies to debut simultaneously online and at fest

By Gregg Kilday

March 1, 2010, 09:48 PM ET

Filmbuff, Cinetic Rights Management’s VOD distribution label, has acquired two films, David Bond’s “Erasing David” and Justin Molotnikov’s “Crying with Laughter,” which it will premiere day and date with the two titles’ premieres at this month’s SXSW Film Festival in Austin.

The two films will appear on the iTunes Movie Store and on Amazon VOD at the same time as they receive their North American premieres at the fest.

“David,” a documentary about the surveillance state, is slated to play the fest March 12, while “Crying,” a thriller, bows March 14.

Starting on Apr. 1, both titles also will be available on demand through Comcast, Time Warner, Verizon and Cox cable providers.

Thanks to Variety for running this article.

Filmbuff to premiere SXSW pics on iTunes

Video-on-demand distributor nabs ‘David,’ ‘Laughter’

Video-on-demand distrib Filmbuff has acquired two pics set to unspool at SXSW this month: David Bond’s “Erasing David,” a new docu about surveillance, and “Crying With Laughter,” a Scottish thriller from scribe-helmer Justin Molotnikov. The distrib will premiere the pics on iTunes and Amazon.com at the same times their films screen at the fest.

“David” will preem March 12 and “Laughter” will bow March 14. Starting April 1, both titles will be available on demand to Comcast, Time Warner, Verizon and Cox subscribers.

Bond, a U.K. native, films his own attempt to avoid two private investigators with “David.” Pic is produced by Ashley Jones.

Molotnikov’s pic follows a standup comic arrested for an assault he has no memory of committing. Film is produced by Claire Mundell, Alastair Clark and Rachel Robey.

Thanks to the NYT for mentioning the film in their recent article about new distribution models.

“Just this week, one such service, FilmBuff, said it had acquired the right to show a pair of films, “Erasing David” and “Crying With Laughter,” on iTunes and Amazon.com, simultaneously with their premieres at South by Southwest, in Austin, Tex., later this month.”