Our film follows researchers who are bringing magicians’ tricks into the laboratory. With impossible magic, amazing facts, and opportunities for viewers to participate in the magic tricks, this extraordinary exploration peeks behind the curtain into a fascinating world where ancient magic meets modern science. Magician Julie Eng not only mystifies us with magic, she also takes us to Montreal’s McGill University to meet Jay Olson who is using card tricks to study consciousness. His research also includes an MRI machine that can apparently not only read minds, but also manipulate thoughts. In the US we meet with professor Anthony Barnhart. He’s a magician turned scientist who is using magic principles to investigate why we sometimes don’t see what’s right under our noses. We also meet Professor Amory Danek who is using the conjuror’s craft to study creativity and problem solving.Professor Ronald Rensink at the University of British Columbia discovered how small distractions can blind drivers to obvious dangers. These studies naturally led him to work with magicians to explore possible new experiments.In London England Gustav Kuhn conducts a study that tracks the eye movements of the magician’s audience. We see tricks that fool us despite nothing actually happening, as well as demonstrations that reveal we can be blind even to our own choices. Colourful and compelling, our film takes a critical and engaging look at the fascinating facts revealed when you see the human mind through the eyes of a magician.
