Fantastic Machine: Elio Germano narrates documentary on video history

A new documentary titled Fantastic Machine, directed by Alex Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck and produced by Ruben Östlund, explores the evolution of video technology from early chronophotography by Eadweard Muybridge to contemporary smartphone culture. The film, distributed by Teodora Film, will be released on May 9. It offers a historical overview with irony, examining how video has shaped human self-understanding and social behaviors. The Italian version features narration by actor Elio Germano. The documentary references milestones such as René Clair's Entr'acte (1924) and works by Dziga Vertov, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Federico Fellini, and David Lynch, as well as contemporary media critiques like Videocracy and Black Mirror.