Feel connected to the Dutch Film Festival by becoming a director yourself
The campaign for the 2012 Dutch Film Festival was unique: film lovers across the country were invited to co-direct a live feature film using Twitter. The best tweets were executed directly on the set. While watching the movie, viewers tweeted plot twists, funny quotes or other input for the star-studded cast. ‘Under Control’ had a one-time premiere, on live national television and online.
With this idea, the Dutch Film Festival reached a huge audience: the campaign generated over €500.000 in free publicity within the country. The festival became a global trending topic on Twitter, beating even the Olympics in London. During the live event, the film generated 1 tweet per second, with thousands of participating viewers. The 32nd edition of the 10-day festival attracted close to 150.000 visitors.
The live shoot’s unique location was inside a former mental institution; the high-security facility was a perfect fit with the movie’s psycho-thriller theme. Here we used 8 HD cameras, live broadband streaming equipment, a custom radio network for communication with the actors and a total crew of 150 people. Everything was orchestrated from a clammy control room for Wefilm director Martijn de Jong and the Twitter crew. With this set-up, it was possible to make a non-stop feature film with scenes in a dozen indoor and outdoor settings. Serious business!
