Written and directed by the late Marcus Harben, Followers combines University students, social media influencers, and ghosts as he digs into society’s obsession with the virtual world. Jonty (Harry Jarvis) is an aspiring influencer about to start University. His student accommodation sees him paired with documentary enthusiast Zauna (Loreece Harrsion), mature student Pete (Daniel Cahill), and fellow social media lover Amber (Erin Austen). As the group try to bond, they realise that their flat comes with an extra housemate, a deceased former student named Dawn. After capturing the first paranormal encounter on film, Jonty’s social standing rockets as he sets about capitalising on his popularity and goes to extreme lengths to achieve his dreams of fame and fortune.
Told through YouTube clips and footage captured on the flatmates’ devices, there’s a distinct found footage feel to Followers, but in reality the narrative is presented in more of a documentary style. Similar in many ways to Graham Hughes’ previous FrightFest offering, Death of a Vlogger, Followers explores the pitfalls of the digital world. Over the course of the film Jonty and the group’s popularity peaks and falls, and their struggle to stay relevant leads (some of) them to make dangerous and immoral decisions. Despite their paranormal setting, many of the tactics on display that are used to remain at the top will be familiar to the social media savvy as Harben casts a light on the toxic quality of the platforms that are supposed to unite us.
Followers is a film that borrows aspects of horror rather than being scary itself. Harben leans into scenarios that make people afraid, but doesn’t give the expected payoffs. The haunting elements actually form more of a side story, with Followers instead honing in on our group of students. When we first meet Jonty he is insufferable, but as with any great coming of age drama, Jonty goes on a journey of self-discovery and his end stance is changed. Followers focusses on friendship and finding your place in the world. It’s something that everyone on the planet can relate to, but it will have an added resonance with those that had to survive those first few months of life away from home at University. The only real moment of fear is when you realise that someone who died in the nineties is now considered old and out of touch enough to be a ghost. Followers isn’t alone in this move, Simon Barrett’s Seance did the same thing, and it’s a little depressing for those of us that remember the decade well.
There is some interesting commentary on the epidemia of social media, the obsession of youths with becoming famous, and how the younger generation have almost entirely lost the ability to exist outside of a phone screen. It doesn’t land in quite the same way as Death of a Vlogger, with it occasionally feeling like an episode of Hollyoaks, but Followers offers a welcome analysis of our modern world.
Followers
Summary
The epidemia of social media and society’s obsession with fame are exposed through the lens of the paranormal as ghosts from the past attempt to make a real world connection.
Followers was reviewed at Arrow Video FrightFest 2021.
