
I've actually never read or heard of that essay. It sounds fascinating though and I'll be sure to look it up and read it. The biggest influence on this film is actually "Blade Runner" and the whole question of "What is it to be human?" and that then snowballed into basically "What truly defines X?" and that in turn turned into the basic backbone of this film.
How?
I used a JVC GY-HM100U. It's alright, the 24p is kinda glitchy, so I didn't use that (I borrowed it from a friend, I wouldn't buy it at that price tag), but overall it's an OK camera.