Matt Umuthicula

A cynical software engineer, conspiracy theorist, and aspiring filmmaker. He is highly prone to both real-life and online arguments, as he enjoys giving critiques unprompted. His main hobby is hacking, which allows him to infiltrate all those big groups he accuses of corruption…

...including The Program.

• Because his father is an esteemed director and his mother is a talented actress, Matt mostly lives in the Umuthicula manor by himself and some housekeepers. He grew up to be relatively self-sufficient, meaning that he mostly spent time in his room with his computer.
  • He regards his parents bitterly. He claims to not enjoy the films they work on, using especially biting criticism when analyzing them.
• Rare, mythical creatures are Matt’s special interest. Some of the conspiracies he believes in are purely their existence, and he’s made many videos ‘proving’ such.
  • The most prominent ‘real’ creature he is convinced of are aliens. He has expressed a desire to communicate with them and be taken to their world.
• Even though he could live comfortably without a job, he works part-time in cyber security for a software company. He claims that it gives him connections and valuable access I otherwise wouldn’t have.
• A HueTube channel under the moniker Aruna is run by a self-proclaimed elite hacker and filmmaker. Aruna’s videos primarily consist of conspiracy theory deep-dives, critical media analysis, and inflammatory arguments against others. Matt denies being Aruna, despite it being very obvious.
  • Aruna is well-known in commentary and film-making communities, and their tendency to argue with anyone about anything has only made them more famous. Their comment sections are often filled with mere spectators who are entertained by the back-and-forth.
• Knowledge of Matt’s home life is often based on public speculation due to his parents’ fame. Some rumors claim that Matt isn’t allowed to join his parents on their projects because he had meddled with either the security or the creative process. Others claim that he is being raised to inherit their prominence in the film industry, thus is trained privately and intensely.
• Telecommunications and the various code languages therein are a hobby Matt actively practices. He enjoys creating his own ciphers and is convinced that there are encrypted messages in everyday, seemingly innocent things.
• His guilty pleasure movie genre is sci-fi action spy movies. He loved them so much growing up that he wanted to be an international spy - which may have fed into his conspiratorial, secretive hobbies.
• Emphasis on swear words is a habit Matt picked up due to its perceived ability to command people’s attention. His arguments online are riddled with a LOUD TONE, to the point where he may speak entirely in capitals.
• Pollimer are usually found in environments akin to ‘primordial soups’, such as primitive swamp areas. However, they also come out during meteor showers, which is where Matt found the one he bonded with.
  • His Pollimer had three peculiar dashes across its chest area, which he took as a sign due to its resemblance to ‘M’ and ‘T’ in morse code. He started wearing three iron rings after their bonding so they could match.
• Rarely does he go anywhere without various electronic tools - such as a phone charger, battery pack, gps…
• Oojin Kim, the protagonist and fellow competitor, appears to be someone of particular interest to Matt. He declares himself their greatest rival when they formally meet in The Program, to Oojin’s confusion. He may know more about them than they know about him.
  • Most of his posturing is based on technological and gaming prowess, which Oojin takes quite seriously. He’s the only other competitor who is just as online and introverted as she is.
• Genetics was his major in college, as he claimed to have already been self-sufficient in computer science.
• Revision of Mass, Matt notes, is like re-arranging the molecules and altering the code of an object. It is a very technical Value in the Mass Manipulation family and requires a sharp attention to detail.
  • He frequently got in trouble at school for using his Value. He would either use it to his own advantage, such as altering the test result on a paper so it would grade him more favorably, or against others, such as moving a fingernail to the bottom of their finger to freak them out. It didn't help that he actively fought against bullies. As a result, despite being an excellent student, he would find himself in detention a lot.
• Although Matt is better versed in software rather than hardware, he expresses a deep interest in futuristic technology as a whole. His computer set-up alone is apparently over a hundred thousand dollars.
• Matt is one of the few characters who is openly and avidly opposed to the Synesthetic Program. His digital footprint is littered with anti-Program conspiracy and rebellion, highlighting the Program’s immorality and deception on the public. Why he was admitted as a competitor, then, is unknown.
  • Prior to being accepted as a competitor into the 200th season, he had worked temporarily as an intern and appeared to have garnered a more insider perspective.