Late last month, Toshiba, Intel and agency Pereira & O’Dell joined forces to create the purported first social media film, Inside. Users were tasked with banding together to help save Emmy Rossum’s character, Christina Perasso, escape her captors using social media. Given that the online film was honed by Disturbia director D.J Caruso, it’s surprising to see that Inside‘s dark tone would produce such a emotional outpouring of gratitude from fans.
As one Periera & O’Dell employee told us, the agency was shocked to see fans independently take to YouTube to express their thanks. “I am floored as I have NEVER in my career seen anything like this,” the employee tells us. “I’ve asked the whole team ‘What is this? They did this themselves?'” It looks like, somehow, a spooky interactive mystery has been turned into a story about online teamwork and togetherness. The full pieced-together film will debut next week here.