I first asked this question on Science Fiction and Writers, but it got held on both and I was redirected here. Even though it may seem a bit narrow scoped for Worldbuilding, I thought I'd take my chance.
I have this idea for a short film class but I couldn't get a full closure yet. The idea is that a university student works late in this computer laboratory in which everything is computer controlled (the door, A/C, lights, wi-fi and stuff) and the project he is working on involves an algorithm that makes the computer choose between two opposing options (these may be stay on/shut down or succesful operation/system malfunction). By this game of his, his aim is to give the computer a feeling of fear, pain, survival etc. But it's not going anywhere. Computer is not showing any intent to choose the option which seems to be the better for it.
We learn about these in a conversation between him and his friend he eats meal with. After the meal, they split and our guy continues on his project. But soon after, the door gets locked, lights go off, the A/C turns off (or may be starts to heat or freeze the room) and he soon realizes that the AI is playing the very game he has been playing with it.
Now, beside from some flaws up to this point, this is where I am stuck. I want this game he was playing earlier to turn against him by the AI and I want him to fail to choose the right option for himself, just like the computer in his project. For example, he will have to choose to stay inside until some help arrives or will try his chance on going outside the windows in a room that is on the third floor. He will eventually choose to try the windows and fall to his death. Or it may involve electroshock I don't know. I want it to be something witty and, in the end, show the viewer the problems with this approach of the student. Thanks for any collaborative advice.
*Some recommendations I got from writers and science fiction sites: - Character finds a third option to get out of the situation and in the end, it reveals that the AI was trying to show him that the world is not binary. I liked this ending actually, but I'm thinking of a more pessimistic ending that implies the right choice is mostly obscure in life. - Another ending suggested the student finding out that the AI was not behind all this, but his friend was. I appreciate a twist, but this one is a bit far off from what I want to say.