Computer Screen Films or “Screen Life” Films is a name coined by director and producer Timur Bekmambetov to describe found footage movies played entirely through computer screens, webcams, phone screens, and other electronic devices. It’s a subcategory. The genre has been around since the advent of the internet, but as technology has advanced and cameras and screens have become part of our daily lives, so has the popularity of these Screen Life movies.
Horror and thrillers tend to be the genres most commonly associated with the Screenlife method of storytelling, but there are a few movies on this list that fall under comedy, romance, and even satire. So, whether you’re looking for bone-chilling horror or a full-blown romantic comedy, there’s sure to be something in this list that piques your interest.
Ten den
den is a Screenlife horror film about a sociology graduate student named Elizabeth. For her final project, Elizabeth begins cataloging interactions with strangers on her Omegle-esque site known as “The Den.” Shortly after starting the experiment, Elizabeth witnessed her account being hacked and a murder on a random chat site. She tried to prove otherwise, only to draw herself into something much darker than her project anticipated.
what to set den Apart from Screenlife’s other horror films, it had a theme focused on the internet’s ability to foster inhumane acts, and the idea came to its most violent conclusions: den The killer’s gimmick becomes a new-age slasher movie whose ability to be seen by anyone by hacking computers.
9 ratter
ratter A psychological thriller based on a short film. webcam By the same writer and director, Branden Kramer.of Ratter, A college girl named Emily moves to New York after breaking up with her boyfriend. As soon as her new life begins, she is hacked and then stalked both online and in person by someone of unknown identity. develop into violence.
It’s not bloody or gut-wrenching, but den, ratter It focuses more on the insane paranoia that comes from being watched all the time. Plus, the movie takes place entirely through Emily’s various electronic devices, so watching Emily’s situation worsen in each scene creates a tense and helpless feeling, and it’s hard to tell if you’re looking at her through the eyes of the stalker. , or her stalker is already somewhere in the room with her and you’re a fly on the wall you can’t do anything about.
8 no friends
no friends was one of the first mainstream horror films to play entirely on computer screens. The film opens with the as yet unrevealed protagonist reading a news story about her recent suicide by Laura Burns. Finally, we meet the main character, Blair. She joins her Skype calls in groups and calls with her numerous friends, one of her other random accounts that cannot be launched from the chat. When a faceless account reveals itself as Laura Burns, Blair and her friends are forced to play a twisted version of the game like “Never Have I Ever.”
in the meantime no friends Although it boasts some pretty gruesome and bloody moments, the film really shines when it introduces the many tense and creepy moments that make the most of its premise. Imagine all the nasty troubleshooting you have to do is a glaring threat.
7 face 2 face
Breaking the mold of most Screenlife films, face 2 face, It’s not a tense mystery or horror, but a heartfelt romantic drama about two high school students. Two childhood friends, Teal and Madison, who use an online chat room to reconnect with each other after Madison moves to California, begin to open up to each other about their lives. The film is serious, without being cynical or sarcastic, and it can cast an unflinching look at dark subjects such as abuse and suicide, putting it in the same category as cinema. looking for alaska in contrast to euphoriaThis is also thanks to the excellent performances of the two actors Daniela Bobadilla. (anger management) and Daniel Ammerman (developmental arrest) Someone who delivers a vulnerable and authentic performance that can be immediately rooted for.
6 Spree
Screenlife Horror Slasher, Subversion of Horror Comedy Spree It stars Joe Keery as Kurt Kunkle, an insane Uber driver trying to go viral by killing passengers and posting videos online.fan of stranger things Seeing Ultra Good-Boy’s Steve Harrington turned into a serial killer by a whimsical influencer can be somewhat jarring at first, but Keery takes the same charismatic energy and takes it in a completely different direction. I’m pointing
Collider called a movieamerican psycho for the digital age,” the reviewers almost unanimously agreed, agreeing that Keery’s performance was incredible and a core tenet that makes this film so enjoyable.
Five profile
profile Inspired by French journalist Anna Hellere’s real-world research into the tactics used to recruit young women to join ISIS. In the film, British journalist Amy Whitaker creates an online profile for her posing as a recent convert to Islam. She is soon contacted by an Isis recruiter named Birrell and lures him to get as much job information as possible from Birrell. But as her machinations deepen, it begins to become difficult for her to keep her two lives separate.
Additionally, the entire movie takes place in this woman’s very chaotic desktop setup, and the movie opens with a scene where she tries to talk to four people at once while clicking multiple windows, tabs, and applications.Develop an incredibly fast and exciting pace uncut gemstoneand perhaps the closest thing the screenlife genre has to a grounded spy thriller so far.
Four thomas in love
thomas in love Also Thomas Est Amreux It is the first feature film to take place entirely on a computer screen since the distant year 2000. In this French drama, the famous Thomas is a man living in a very colorful and very online future whose extreme agoraphobia has kept him quarantined in an apartment for eight years. Satisfied with Clara, Thomas craves a deeper, more human romantic connection. So, with the help of an online prostitution service, a therapist insisted he enrolled in an online dating class, so Thomas decided to see if he could meet someone who could help him feel satisfied again. I tried .
3 Immediately CU
Immediately CU Another thriller in the Screenlife genre, this one from India. The film’s claim to fame is that it was shot entirely on an iPhone. The film follows Jimmy Klien, a bank employee who meets Anumol Sebastian on a dating app and instantly falls in love with her, even though they have never met in person. She goes missing one day when Anu calls Jimmy with bruises on her face and Jimmy gets involved in her private life. Jimmy becomes the prime suspect in her disappearance and Jimmy and his friend Kevin must work together to find out what happened to Anu in order to prove his innocence. Mystery of screen life If you want to see her thriller, den, Immediately CU It should be on your watchlist.
2 host
host A supernatural British horror film about teens who inadvertently summon a demon while conducting an online seance during a Zoom meeting. similar in many ways no friends However, instead of being punished for the death of a former classmate, the demons that haunt the film’s ensemble cast have no direct origin other than being born through a ritual. host It has perhaps the most unique manufacturing process.
The film began early in the Covid-19 pandemic when writer-director Rob Savage pulled an online prank during a Zoom call with a friend. Savage documented the prank and its reaction, and after the short film went viral, Savage developed the story into a feature film. The actors and director all shot in separate homes and were responsible for all their own special effects and stunts, with the actors using practical effects such as fishing lines to make objects appear to move on their own. This fully independent filmmaking didn’t even include a script, but there was an incredibly detailed treatment that the actors followed in real life, and even knew what would happen to their fellow cast members’ fates. did not.
1 Searching
There are plenty of movies on this list about someone trying to solve another person’s disappearance, but the movies with the highest budgets, most compelling casts, and most positive reactions are definitely from 2018. Searching. of Searching David Kim (John Cho) teams up with a police detective to investigate the disappearance of his daughter Margot.In fact, of all the Screenlife movies on this list Searching John Cho, who may be the most famous and well-received, was nominated for Best Male Actor at the Independent Spirit Awards, and the film excels at the unpredictability of its sprawling, fast-paced plot. As far as Screenlife mysteries are concerned, this may be the best one. Plus, there’s a lot to love about a movie about her father doing his best to get her daughter back safely.
