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Debut Film 'This Is How the World Ends' Is Released Straight to VHS

Robert dos Santos has chosen a limited VHS run to create a tactile viewing experience, build a committed audience and push back against AI-driven creative tools

Overview

  • The filmmaker launched pre-orders in early June 2026 and says global orders topped 1,000, with outlets reporting the limited VHS run has sold out.
  • Dos Santos frames the straight-to-VHS release as an explicit protest against generative AI and streaming convenience, saying the tape’s imperfections make the work feel human and intentional.
  • The movie is a low-budget sci‑fi shot mostly at AfrikaBurn that dramatizes a late-stage conflict between humans and AI Machine States without revealing plot twists.
  • And Films is handling the release with U.S. distribution by boutique label VHS Haven, and dos Santos held sales meetings at the Cannes marketplace to seek a later theatrical run.
  • The choice joins a wider physical‑media revival where filmmakers use small, collectible runs to build direct audiences and signal alternative models of creative control.