How often do you check your phone? We've all heard the stats, but it never really sinks in. By the end of today, most of us will have checked our phones 150 times — on the toilet (you know), at the table, and especially in the car.

In a new documentary, It's People Like Us, Academy Award-winning director Eva Orner (Taxi to the Dark Side, Chasing Asylum) follows five Australians who are somewhat attached to their devices. It's an attempt to expose the increasing dependence humans have on their smartphones — and how dangerous this can be on the road.

A pretty common scene, shown in this still from the doco.Credit: it's people like us

“It’s People Like Usaims to get each and every one of us to think about how we use our phones in everyday life, question how they have become an extension of ourselves and most importantly inspire change and self-regulation," says Orner.

Premiering in Melbourne on Sept. 21 and now streaming from the documentary's website, the film follows five Australians aged 18-30 for a period of three weeks. Cameras were installed in each participant's car for the duration.

SEE ALSO:5 simple tips to spend less time on your phone

Pre-interviews see each participant believing they don't check their phones when driving, which of course, you see them all doing during the documentary.

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“[With] 2017 marking ten years since the first iPhone, phone attachment has become engrained in our everyday lives, and everyone is doing it," says Orner.

One of the participants in an all-too-familiar dinner situation.Credit: it's people like us

"We haven’t established boundaries on when and where it is okay to use our phones, resulting in a profound impact on our behaviour, our relationships as well as our personal health and safety.”

The doco has the full support (and some financial backing) of the Transport Accident Commission. It also, interestingly, has the thumbs up from the 5-0. "Victoria Police acknowledge that real footage of real driving behaviour is vital to bring this issue to the attention of all Victorians," says the website.

Not one of the participants will receive a fine for using their phones while driving in the doco — the penalty is four demerit points and an A$476 ($377) fine.

One of the participants checks her phone while driving, with her young child in the back seat.Credit: it's people like us

This documentary signals a less personally risky but nonetheless radical move for Orner, who specialises in documentaries governments don't want you to see.

Previous documentaries include her 2008 Academy Award and Emmy winning effort Taxi to the Dark Side, which examined the U.S. military's use of torture and filmed inside Guantanamo Bay. She also made headlines in Australia with her 2016 documentary Chasing Asylum,which featured footage secretly captured inside offshore detention centres Manus Island and Nauru.

It’s People Like Usis available to stream in full on the film's website.

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TopicsDocumentaries