Love Hacking

LOVE HACKING - A robot inventor dating documentary

A virtual relationship becomes a reality when a robot inventor falls in love over the Internet and journeys to Nepal to meet his fiance for the first time.

Synopsis

"Love Hacking" is a short documentary that follows the journey of Tim Heath, a robot inventor living in Silicon Valley. After a personal reawakening, Tim radically shifts his outlook on courtship and utilizes the technology he knows best in order to find love. He dips into a global dating pool on the Internet and eventually meets Sarita on LDS Planet--a worldwide dating website for Mormons. Sarita is from Nepal and a recent convert from Hinduism to Christianity. After only three months of dating, Tim proposes and finds himself on a plane to Nepal to meet Sarita in person for the first time. The next day he marries her in a traditional Hindu wedding. "Love Hacking" is a contemporary love story where Mormons and Hindus come together in a journey of faith, technology, and marriage.

Director's Note

I was researching cross-cultural marriage and online dating when I learned of Tim's recent engagement over Skype. I began filming with Tim immediately and after only 2 1/2 weeks, I found myself on a plane to Nepal. At moments, the accelerated time frame for filming seemed impossible. I would remind myself, though, that if Tim and Sarita could make this personal journey, then surely I could find a way to navigate unexpected circumstances and power outages in Nepal in order to document their story.

Format

Color HD Video, 16x9, 21 minutes 28 seconds

Film Credits

A film by

Jenni Nelson

Featuring

(Tim) William Grayson Heath Sarita Heath

Also with

Ronald Victor Chapin Rob Etherington Maya Niru Joshi

Sound Recording

Rebekah Meredith

Music by

Beau Sorenson

Cinematography

Jenni Nelson

Additional Camera

Rebekah Meredith Mina T. Son Briar March

Additional Sound Recording

Maria Fortiz-Morse Jenni Nelson Mina T. Son

Production Assistant

Ishor Bajracharya Shyam Krishna

Translation

Ruby Thapliya

Color Finishing

Gary Coates

Sound Mix

Dan Olmsted

Post-production Assistant

Alex Simon

Faculty Advisors

Jan Krawitz Kristine Samuelson Jamie Meltzer

Technical Assistance

Mark Urbanek Christian Gainsley

Special thanks to

Rebekah Meredith Mina T. Son Briar March Sara Newens Ryan Malloy Rory Fraser Kevin Gordon Steven Okazaki Jack and Kathy Nelson Betty and Dale Butler Becky and Charlie Johnson Brooke Crosland Johnny Symons Sara Mott Terah Bromley Axel Bromley Heavah Bromley Sadona Bromley Xavier Bromley Asa Bromley

thanks to the participants

Aalsha Joshi Aisha Joshi Alan Federman Alison Lewis Anjeesha Joshi Anne Ogborn Baba K.C. Chris Phoenix Chris Sakelarios Ivan Lenkov Kapa Lenkov Karen Damian Kiran Kumar Joshi Laxmi Sheshta Margaret Duffy Meera Joshi Nikki Joshi Niru Joshi Oscar Joshi Raju Kumar Joshi Sabina Shesta Sabina Shrestha Sajita Amatya Sanjay Joshi Sasha Markova Surandra K.C. Surti Jhoshi Tika Acharya

and thanks to

Adam Findley Brady Mickelsen Claire and Brad Hawkins Cristian Bell Delaney Ruston Derek Crocker Dow Wilson dyrectory.com Gail Holmes Grace Macy Jessica Mockett Jill and Josh Clegg John Plewe Jonathan and Leslie Bignham Jonathan Hammer Joseph McCarthy Karl Kerksiek Kirsten Heder Lisa Farr Liz Brimhall Nina Vir Peggy Phillips Prashant Upadhyay Scott Robertson Stephanie Schenck Susan Oberlink and Steve Taylor Tejash Unadkat Thomas Plewe