The Nature of Existence (2010)

What are the answers to the great questions of life, and who is certain they know the truth others have been struggling to find for centuries? Filmmaker Roger Nygard, after examining the lives of Star Trek fans and used car salesmen, profiles a number of thinkers both great and ordinary in this documentary. For The Nature of Existence, Nygard prepared a questionnaire with 85 weighty philosophical questions, ranging from "Why do we exist?" and "Do we have free will?" to "Who created God?" and "Is there a moral yardstick that applies to all cultures?" Nygard then set out to interview as many people who might have something to say about his list of imponderables as possible, ranging from biologist and author Richard Dawkins, physicist and String Theory creator Leonard Susskind, and Indian spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar to a born-again Christian wrestler, the director of The Empire Strikes Back, a pair of self-proclaimed druids, and a pizza cook. The result is a witty, thought-provoking, and often surprising study in the greatest mysteries of life. The Nature of Existence was an official selection at the 2009 Cinequest Film Festival.