Opinion – The Reality of Social Media Influence on Film

MZed EducationOpinion

by Mascha DeikovaJuly 3^rd, 2026

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There is little point in denying that social media now takes up a significant amount of space and time in our lives and work – with rare exceptions, of course. Social media affects the film industry as well, both in production and on the creative side. It influences how films are marketed, and occasionally, it can produce completely uncontrolled viral moments that attract new audiences. It can be storytelling’s biggest enemy, or a source of unexpected opportunities for newcomers. Yet it is here to stay, and we can no longer ignore it. Below, we look at some of the latest trends and the growing influence of social media on modern films and series.

However, let’s not talk about generational differences and the “short attention window”. I know there is an issue with people who become accustomed to social media and cannot watch videos longer than 2 minutes. I also know that YouTube Shorts introduced the option to hold the right side of the screen to play videos at 2x speed – something TikTok and Instagram implemented ages ago – so now users can watch what are already super-short clips even faster. It’s all very depressing. But putting that aside, social media has a huge impact on modern filmmaking, which concerns us – creators, cinema goers, film lovers – as well. This is what I would like to concentrate on in this opinion piece and invite you to join in.

Next-gen social media influence on movie marketing

We all know that films need marketing. That’s a big part of the distribution process if you want to get people into cinemas or onto streaming platforms. Although press tours, billboard posters, premieres with stars, trailers in theaters, and so on remain on the list, another player is gaining prominence. Imagine you need to reach a younger audience (say, Zoomers and millennials). They don’t watch TV anymore and often use various ad blockers online. So where do you find them? Naturally, on social media.

It seems that more and more production companies are investing in creative SMM (social media marketing) early on. A recent example that comes to my mind is “Project Hail Mary.” I’ve stumbled across their Instagram Reels (or TikToks) so many times that I’ve lost count. For example:

Or how about this one?

Do you see what they did? They prolonged the life of the movie’s favorite character – Rocky – by making short, fun videos with him and the main actor, Ryan Gosling. Just to promote the film, yes, but in an original, highly likable way, connected to the film’s plot. For sure, it wasn’t cheap (just imagine the “normal” A-list actor rates and the cost of VFX required to create such clips). Yet the audience liked the Reels so much that they shared and commented on them, creating algorithmic momentum and attracting new potential viewers.

Going viral

That’s what contemporary social media can do really well: create virality. As pop art icon Andy Warhol once allegedly said: “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” This quote now seems like a prophecy. Thanks to Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Co., everyone can indeed make a post or video that goes viral and suddenly gets millions of views. So, yes, of course, it happens with film scenes as well. I want to point out two curious cases that have happened recently.

Do you remember Tim Burton’s series “Wednesday” on Netflix? There was an episode with a school dance in the first season. The main actress, Jenna Ortega, famously explained on late-night shows that she choreographed the entire sequence herself in 48 hours, using archival footage of dancing goth kids from the 80s as research. The following is the result of her experiment:

According to Jenna, Netflix knew right away: This will be a thing on TikTok. The social media platform, which is famous for viral dances, didn’t disappoint. After the episode aired, millions of people around the world recreated, filmed, and shared the choreography, causing a crushing wave of attention for the series. Not that the show needed more success (with names like Tim Burton, Jenna Ortega, and iconic “Adams family” attached to it), but the result is impressive nevertheless.

Soundtracks under social media influence

The second case of crazy virality we need to briefly look at is the soundtrack from “K-Pop Demon Hunters,” the Oscar-winning animated feature from 2025. Here is a quote from Billboard magazine:

After slowly climbing the charts following the film’s release, the soundtrack spent two weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in September and October. Its rise was boosted by the runaway success of “Golden,” which became a Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit in August and ruled the ranking for eight weeks. On the Billboard Global 200, it has topped the chart for 18 weeks.

Can you imagine that? One of the reasons for this kind of success is that at least five of the songs, written specifically for this musical fantasy film, have conquered social media pretty quickly. Chances are, even if you didn’t watch the movie, you have heard its single “Golden” lots of times, in different forms. Sometimes used in Reels and Stories on Instagram. Other times, as viral dances on TikTok. Maybe even as vocal remakes by song creators on YouTube. (I guess I’ve seen all of those and more.) Nevertheless, virality also contributed to the film’s success, though it came through music rather than dedicated promos. The 1.5 billion views for the “Golden” official lyric video on the Sony Pictures Animation account speak for themselves.

Fragmented attention

At this point, it may sound as if I am praising social media. I am not. I am simply pointing out the level of power it has gained and how quickly it can make something or someone famous. The point is that we can hardly ignore it anymore when we make films — not only because of algorithms, but because audiences are already gathered there.

The most problematic side of social media’s influence on films and series, in my opinion, is the so-called “second screen storytelling.” The idea behind it is the assumption that most viewers no longer watch long-form content with their full attention. Instead, they also have a smartphone in their hand and keep checking their messages (best case), or social media feeds (worst case). If you watched the incredible documentary “The Social Dilemma,” which offers a deep dive into how algorithms are designed to hold our attention, you know that this situation is not surprising. The fingers run to the screen by themselves to get more and more quick dopamine by scrolling down the endless rabbit hole.

Social media influence: second-screen storytelling

Thus, according to various media sources, platforms like Netflix have begun accommodating “second screen” viewers by simplifying scenes, repeating the key plot points, and including the action and emotional descriptions in the dialogue. The goal is that people who are not actively watching should still be able to follow along. “The Guardian” gives an example of such a dialogue from “Irish Wish:”

– We spent a day together. I admit it was a beautiful day filled with dramatic vistas and romantic rain, but that doesn’t give you the right to question my life choices. Tomorrow, I’m marrying Paul Kennedy. – Fine. That will be the last you see of me because after this job is over I’m off to Bolivia to photograph an endangered tree lizard.

On Reddit, users complain that even huge and successful shows have started adjusting their writing to the second-screen problem (for instance, “Stranger Things” in Season 5). As someone points out, they were ironically scrolling on their phone because the script and dialogue were so bad that they were not interested in the show.

Personally, I cannot stand bad exposition, so I really hope that this strategy won’t succeed and will be abandoned for good. And soon!

Democratization through social media influence

Another trend the influence of social media seems to have brought to the table is the democratization of filmmaking. What I mean is that nowadays, you don’t need to go the “classic” conservative path to make your own movie. This year is already becoming a shining example of how successful YouTubers follow their dreams and create global hits that play in cinemas worldwide. To date, three such films have performed well at the box office, showing that indie filmmaking can indeed be supported by your audience on social media. Let’s not talk about the supernatural horror “Obsession” by YouTube sketch comedian Curry Barker, because you probably know everything about it already.

Far more relevant here is the story of “Iron Lung.” An American YouTuber, Mark Fischbach, better known online as Markiplier, decided to adapt the game of the same name. He stars in the lead role, wrote the script, and made it his directorial debut. The film follows a convict forced to pilot a submarine through an ocean of blood, and it is truly an atmospheric and artistic story that leaves more questions open than it answers. Yet the curious part is what happened with the film’s release. Initially, it was negotiated to screen in only 60 independent theaters in the US. However, Markiplier encouraged his fans to request it directly from their local theaters, and they sure did! As a result, “Iron Lung” was shown in over 4000 (!) theaters globally. I got to catch it in Prague, Czech Republic, two weeks after the film’s premiere, and the room was packed!

When the film takes its roots from social media

Another inspiring example is “Backrooms,” which is currently running in the cinemas. In 2019, an anonymous user started a 4chan thread on the paranormal-themed board, posting a photo showing a large room with an uncomfortable yellow atmosphere. This quickly grew into a fictional location, an extradimensional complex of empty rooms, called “The Backrooms.” Around it, a whole lore has evolved, and a huge fandom has gathered.

Four years ago, an American YouTuber called “Kane Pixels” posted this short horror video on YouTube:

Kane Parsons was 16 at the time, but this video became part of his Backrooms short-film series (with 24 official episodes). He used the free software Blender and Adobe After Effects to create the Backrooms environment, and it took him a month to complete the first video. The fandom liked it, and the short received many positive reviews. As of now, it has 88 million views. Moreover, A24 decided to adapt Kane’s shorts into a film and invited him to direct it. “Backrooms” just hit cinemas, and I assure you it will have a huge box-office run given its fan base. It is already drawing lots of attention and traction.

Let’s open the discussion!

No, it doesn’t mean that now every YouTuber with an audience can become a filmmaker in the blink of an eye (neither do all of them want to, to begin with). But it just shows us that social media opens new possibilities for pursuing your dream of making features, which are not tied to climbing a career ladder or getting your script through the doors of a huge production company. This is, in my opinion, an inspiring thought!

By the way, if you have always wanted to start a YouTube channel but feel that it is “too late,” or simply do not know where to begin, we have a fantastic course on MZed, titled “Starting a YouTube Channel.” Kitty Peters hosts the course and guides participants through the process step by step.

The influence of social media is, of course, a huge topic, and I’m definitely open to discussing it further.

What is your opinion? How do you feel about social media’s influence on modern filmmaking? What other trends do you notice? What do you see as negative and positive impacts? Let’s talk a bit deeper in the comments below.

Feature image source: stills from “Project Hail Mary” promo campaign (source: Sony Pictures); “Golden” official lyric video (source: Sony Pictures Animation); and “Backrooms” by Kane Parsons (source: A24).

Full disclosure: MZed is owned by CineD.