The Final Cut

“Dear Customer. Welcome to the Zoë Tech family! You have made an important decision: you have decided to acquire a Zoë implant© for your unborn child. What does this mean for your child? Immortality! Our patented Zoë chip will be inserted into his or her brain at birth so that, from the word go, everything that occurs to them in their lives will be recorded. In this way, life’s most beautiful moments will never be lost or fade with the passing of time …” Thus the Zoë chip chronicles an entire lifespan in images. When a chip-wearer dies, an editor assembles images from the deceased’s life on a “rememory roll” which can be shown as a very special kind of aide-mémoire at that person’s funeral. In the beginning, only the rich can afford these Zoë chips, but after a while, they bring a fundamental change to the way people relate to each other. However, the new technology soon has it’s opponents, who are prepared to fight for the right to forget. Alan Hackman is the best editor at Zoë Technologies. His talent in wiping out and hence forgiving the sins and misdemeanours of his clients has made him a much sought-after director of these visual obituaries. At the same time, his ability to watch people’s lives without any trace of emotion has turned him into a cold-hearted man, incapable of seeing life from a subjective point of view. Then, one day, Hackman is assigned to edit the biography of a big wig at Zoë Technologies. As he is sifting through the material, he discovers an image that has haunted him since childhood. This marks the beginning of Alan Hackman’s breathless search for the truth that lies beyond these manipulated images …