Athens-based Heretic has secured the worldwide sales rights to “And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine,” which will have its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in the World Cinema Documentaries section, and has just debuted a teaser (below).
The film is the premiere from directors Axel Danielsson and Maximilian van Arterik, whose 2016 short film Ten Meter Tower was in competition at the Berlin Film Festival and Sundance, and was nominated for the Emmy Awards for news and documentaries.
“Fantastic Machine” is produced by Danielson and Van Artryck and produced by Platform Productions Eric Hemmendorff and Robin Ostlund, producer and director of Cannes Palme d’Or and European Film Award-winning “Triangle of Sadness”.
The film is a thought-provoking examination of humanity’s fascination with itself, and with the framing of the world through the lens of a camera. The filmmakers explore how mankind’s obsession with image has grown to change our behaviour, look at the societal consequences of outputting images for the 45 billion cameras on the planet, and ask how humanity went from a backyard photo to a billion-euro content industry in 200 years.
In a statement, the directors said: “As filmmakers, we love the camera. We believe in the camera as a tool that can bind humanity together by sharing our experiences and creating common understanding. We hope this film promotes critical thinking. It covers nearly 200 years of history, from 1839 to today.” From the first images to what we now call “content making”.
Ioanna Stace, Head of Heretical Sales and Acquisitions, said, “The two filmmakers’ unique voice and fascination with human behavior translates into a sharp exploration of our obsession and engagement with the picture over the years. This is a truly entertaining piece of cinema, crafted with wit and wit.”
Van Aertryck said, “We wanted a sales company who would be open to working with us on this documentary-ready in a way that was also perhaps less than conventional.” Added Danielson, “We always work collaboratively at Plattform Produktions, and it’s been great to have our sales team embrace that.”
The film is produced by Vibeke Vogel, and the associate producer is Rikke Tambo Andersen. It is a co-production with Sveriges Television, Film I Väst and Bullitt Film, and is supported by Svenska Filminstitutet, Danish Film Institute, Nordisk Film & TV Fond, Arte GEIE, Arts Council Sweden, Gothenburg Municipality and Transparent Films.
Heretic’s roster includes Berlinale Panorama’s “Convenience Store” by Michael Borodin, and Milos Pusi’s “Working Class Heroes”, starring European Film Award winner Jasna Đuričić; Valentina Morel’s debut I Have Electric Dreams, which won three awards at the Locarno Film Festival and first prize for the Horizontes Latinos section at the San Sebastian Film Festival; and Toronto’s Marian Matias’ “Runner,” which won the San Sebastian Jury Prize.
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