Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibilityThe AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist | 2026 Sundance Film Festival
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The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist

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United States2026104 minEnglish
AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist

A father-to-be tries to figure out what is happening with the AI insanity, exploring the existential dangers and stunning promise of this technology that humanity has created.

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A father-to-be tries to figure out what is happening with the AI insanity, exploring the existential dangers and stunning promise of this technology that humanity has created.

There’s something deeply compelling about art born out of acute anxiety — perhaps because it stems from vulnerability and a need for clarity. The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist grew out of co-director Daniel Roher’s profound unease about the future, especially the role artificial intelligence will play in shaping it. Together with Charlie Tyrell, Roher explores both the dazzling possibilities and risks of these fast-evolving tools, along with the price they may carry.

Combining expert interviews, home videos, and animations, the film meets this pressing AI discourse with curiosity and heart, clarifying complex ideas while acknowledging how much remains uncertain and deeply human. Rather than claiming to have all the answers, The AI Doc offers a conversation that feels urgent, hopeful, and impossible to ignore. — AT

Available in person only.

PremieresAll FeaturesBiographyScience & TechnologyNonfictionAudio DescriptionClosed CaptionOpen CaptionU.S. Only- less

Screenings

in persononline not available
  • Jan 27, 5:30 PM MST
    Premiere

    The Ray Theatre

    Park City

    Closed CaptionClosed Caption

    Audio DescriptionAudio Description

  • Jan 28, 9:00 AM MST
    Screening

    Megaplex Redstone - 1

    Park City

    Open CaptionOpen Caption

    Audio DescriptionAudio Description

  • Jan 31, 11:30 AM MST
    Screening

    Library Center Theatre

    Park City

    Closed CaptionClosed Caption

    Audio DescriptionAudio Description

  • Feb 1, 4:00 PM MST
    Screening

    Megaplex Redstone - 1

    Park City

    Closed CaptionClosed Caption

    Audio DescriptionAudio Description

    THIS FILM IS NOT AVAILABLE ONLINE

Credits

  • Director(s)

    Daniel Roher

    Charlie Tyrell

  • Producers

    Daniel Kwan

    Jonathan Wang

    Shane Boris

    Diane Becker

    Ted Tremper

  • Co-Producer

    Carolyne Jurriaans

  • Story Producer

    Josef Beeby

  • Editors

    Davis Coombe

    Daysha Broadway

  • Associate Editor

    Laurie Polisky

  • Directors of Cinematography

    Jenni Morello

    Lowell A. Meyer

  • Music by

    Marius de Vries

    Matt Robertson

  • Associate Producer

    EJ Lykes

  • Archival Producer

    Leah-Lani Griffin

  • Music Supervisor

    Dan Wilcox

  • Company

    Focus Features

  • Contact

    Lacey Beattie

    filmfestivals@focusfeatures.com

Meet the Artist

Panelist Name

Daniel Roher

  • Instagram

Daniel Roher is best known for the documentary Navalny, which won an Oscar and BAFTA. His latest film, Tuner, is a jazzy crime thriller starring Dustin Hoffman and Leo Woodall. Roher’s new documentary explores the promise and peril of AI. Ask him for a drawing. Seriously. See what happens.

Panelist Name

Charlie Tyrell

  • Instagram

Charlie Tyrell is a Canadian filmmaker whose work has screened at the Sundance Film Festival, SXSW, TIFF, Hot Docs, DOC NYC, Tribeca, and more. His autobiographical short My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes was shortlisted for the 2019 Academy Awards and won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Short Documentary.

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