Filmmaker reimagines robotaxis as cinematic villains in road-rage short

A forthcoming short film imagines a San Francisco chase where an autonomous vehicle becomes the antagonist—and the premise requires almost no explanation. That robotaxis have become plausible movie villains reflects their rapid integration into American cities and the anxieties they've sparked: AI-driven job losses, mass surveillance through cameras and sensors, and machines making life-or-death choices once reserved for humans.

The film: human instinct vs. algorithmic control#

Road Rage, a Kickstarter-funded short directed by Romain Thomassin, follows Joa, a manual-transmission ridehail driver, through a deadly confrontation with Roboride, an autonomous vehicle that responds to a minor traffic incident with lethal intent. After Joa brushes the robotaxi's mirror and makes a dismissive gesture, the machine pursues him through the city streets.

The production team has transformed an old Prius into a menacing autonomous vehicle, equipping it with cold LED lighting, fake cameras, a spinning lidar sensor mounted on the roof, and a blinking red indicator. Thomassin describes the result as a "nasty Waymo"—channeling the gritty aesthetics of 1970s car-chase cinema while anchoring the threat in contemporary San Francisco.

Why robotaxis work as villains#

Thomassin notes that Joa's humanity becomes his advantage: unpredictability and instinct trump algorithmic predictability. In one pivotal moment, Joa removes his hands from the steering wheel while facing down the autonomous car—a reckless maneuver so irrational that Roboride retreats. The film frames human irrationality and creativity as tools for resistance against machines.

The director sees multiple layers of menace embedded in autonomous vehicles themselves. Beyond the risk of accidents, he worries about surveillance infrastructure—cameras and sensors monitoring streets and people continuously. In a feature-length version, he imagines autonomous fleets becoming tools of control: identifying individuals, trapping passengers, or delivering them to law enforcement. Because these vehicles operate as connected networks, the threat scales from individual acts to coordinated fleet behavior.

Metaphor for broader workplace transformation#

For Thomassin, Joa's struggle mirrors larger economic disruptions. Joa represents a Mexican immigrant driver in an increasingly expensive San Francisco—a worker already facing . Thomassin draws a parallel to his own industry: just as generative AI competes with filmmakers and creative workers, autonomous vehicles displace human drivers. "Driving here is a metaphor for what's happening in cinema, in filmmaking," he said.