By Sam Gassaway | Photo Editor
This past week, I went to see “Iron Lung” in theaters, a new independent sci-fi horror film from popular YouTuber Markiplier. The film was made on a $3 million budget and was directed, written, produced, edited and led by Markiplier, without any studio support.
With the overwhelmingly positive response on social media and the record-breaking opening weekend that “Iron Lung” had, I couldn’t help but wonder if this was a lightning-in-a-bottle situation or the beginning of a new cinematic trend. What could the success of “Iron Lung” mean for the future of film?
To put it simply, I think Hollywood and the film industry as a whole should take away three main points from the success of “Iron Lung,” and I’ve ranked them based on how likely I can see it would be for them to be implemented.
1. A rise of single-location, lower-budget films
One of the most creative things “Iron Lung” did was telling an engaging story in a single location, most of the time with a single actor. In the film, Markiplier plays a convict who is forced to explore an ocean of blood alone on a distant moon.
The entire film takes place in the submarine, and the only glimpse of the outside world we see is through a series of low-quality photographs. While the limited budget meant they were limited in how they could tell this story, I think this works in the film’s favor. The claustrophobic, rusted submarine adds a level of dread and terror by playing into the fear of being trapped. It wouldn’t have been nearly as effective if viewers could see the outside world.
The concept of a single-location feature film is by no means new. One of the most critically acclaimed films of all time, “12 Angry Men” (1957), takes place entirely in real time in a single room; however, it’s a style of filmmaking that isn’t often seen nowadays.
Much like how “The Blair Witch Project” inspired a surplus of “found-footage” movies in the 2000s, I believe that “Iron Lung” will inspire a series of low-budget, single-location films from studios and indie filmmakers alike.
2. More creator-driven projects
This film would not be nearly as successful without Markiplier at the center of it. I’m by no means a fan of his content on YouTube or Twitch, but it’s been clear throughout the creation of this film that he has a true passion for filmmaking and the source material behind it.
Markiplier was directly responsible for selling this movie to audience members. By talking about the passion behind the production directly to his viewers on YouTube videos and livestreams, he brought in viewers who wouldn’t have seen the movie otherwise.
We saw with Timothée Chalamet and the “Marty Supreme” media tour last October that a movie’s marketing can be centered around a single person, but Markiplier brings it to a whole new level by being a direct voice to his fans.
I think that we’ll start to see a trend of more content creators collaborating with filmmakers and using their influence and direct communication with their audience to sell future projects.
3. Direct deals with movie theaters
One unique aspect of the distribution of “Iron Lung” was that there was no studio behind it throughout the entire process, even distribution. Instead, Markiplier’s team distributed the film directly, and it’s been shown in over 4,000 theaters worldwide.
As it becomes more difficult for theaters to stay open, I believe the relationship between theaters and the films they show will change.
In a world where larger studios are sending more of their smaller films straight to streaming, I think more indie studios will make direct distribution deals with movie theaters.
It’s hard to tell at this point if “Iron Lung” will have a lasting impact on the film industry. It could very well just be a flash in the pan; however, I believe this film is the start of something greater, and if Hollywood wants to keep up with what audiences want, they should start taking notes.
