Ok, gang. this is a long one, but I think it’s valuable. I also think that if you start practicing what I unpack below, it could start serving your organization, projects, and storytelling immediately. I hope it’s as valuable to you as it has proven to be for me and the team over the past few months. So with out further ado, here we go!
Introduction: The Problem No One Wants to Admit
In mid-May 2025, I had the honor of attending the Webby Awards in New York. (I promise this is the last time I’ll mention this in our newsletter, ok!?) Our team at Distant Moon, alongside our technical and agency partners, had just won Best Multimedia Storytelling. It was a moment of celebration, of creative validation, and of anticipation – because I was about to meet the minds who had supposedly shaped the internet over the past year.
But what I encountered instead was a culture standing at the crossroads.
One by one, the honorees paraded on stage. Not for their world-changing vision or stories that stirred the soul. But for content that was – at best – amusing. TikTokers. YouTubers. Instagrammers. A guy who went viral posting squirrel videos. A woman whose performance art could be summarized as “very demure, very mindful.” There was no shortage of attention, but I couldn’t help wondering: To what end? Where were the stories that shaped people’s lives for the better?
Ironically, at my own table sat people whose work did that – projects that gave voice to peacemakers from every nation, or helped viewers understand the experiences of others from radically different backgrounds. But they weren’t the creators on stage. The spotlight went to the spectacle, not the substance.
Why?
Because Neil Postman and Marshall McLuhan were right. “Who are Neil Postman and Marshall McLuhan?” I’m glad you asked, more on them in a moment, but in short, they’re famous for the well-known aphorism: “The medium is the message.”
Today’s dominant media – TikTok, Instagram, YouTube – were built for attention, not transformation. These platforms reward brevity, not depth; spectacle, not soul. And when you try to tell meaningful stories in a medium designed for distractions, the medium wins. This is not to say that NO longform and insightful content can capture attention on these mediums. In fact, as you’ll see, we’re convinced that with strategic and mindful (but not demure) processes applied to the traditional film and content creation process, you can co-opt inherently distraction-prone media platforms for soul-enriching and message-delivering content.
But this requires a rigorous and often ignored approach. One that helps brands with something truly worth saying break through all the noise.
Section 1: The Hidden Architecture of Modern Media
In his prophetic book Amusing Ourselves to Death, Neil Postman warned us that the greatest threat to truth wasn’t censorship, but entertainment. He built on Canadian philosopher, Marshall McLuhan’s insight that the form of communication – the medium – shapes the content it conveys.
McLuhan put it bluntly: The medium is the message.
Postman took it further: in a television-dominated world at the time of his writing, even serious subjects become entertainment. In our era, the dynamic is supercharged. TikTok doesn’t just favor the trivial. It penalizes the profound.
The result? Content that actually matters struggles to survive. It gets buried under waves of viral fluff.
And this is where many brands (especially purpose-driven ones) get stuck. They have stories that matter. But they try to tell those stories through platforms that trivialize everything.
Section 2: Why Traditional Film Still Doesn’t Cut It
Some might say, “Just make a long-form film. Invest in quality. Tell the story cinematically.” And sure, that’s better than a TikTok video. But traditional film storytelling, when applied to messaging and brand-building still carries a fatal flaw:
It’s broadcast. Not a conversation.
Even beautiful films can fall flat if they’re built on assumptions about what an audience wants or needs. Films that are made for an audience, but never with them.
This one-directional approach often leads to heartbreaking outcomes: high-effort films that miss the mark, don’t connect, and fade into oblivion.
The brand-building and media landscape is littered with more examples of failure than success. Just look at the graveyard of branded videos on YouTube and Instagram that never reach beyond a few dozen views. For every viral campaign that breaks through, there are thousands of high-effort, high-cost pieces of content that vanish into the void. But this dynamic isn’t unique to marketing; it’s foundational to the entire storytelling industry. Hollywood, the very machine built to manufacture dreams, is structured around failure. In fact, it’s not an exaggeration to say the business model of Hollywood relies on the rare success subsidizing a sea of flops. According to industry analyses, only about 20% of Hollywood films manage to achieve profitability, leaving approximately 80% failing to break even at the domestic box office.
This means that most films lose money. And I’m not talking about obscure indie projects. I’m saying some of the most anticipated, studio-backed films with A-list talent and nine-figure budgets regularly underperform or outright bomb. The 2023 box office saw colossal losses on titles like The Marvels, which had the lowest opening of any Marvel Cinematic Universe movie and lost an estimated $237 million, and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, which, despite massive marketing spend and global recognition, is estimated to have lost over $100 million.
So if even Hollywood, with all its data, budgets, and storytelling talent, struggles to connect with audiences, what hope does a mission-driven brand have of breaking through without a radically different approach?
Section 3: A New Way Forward – Audience-Powered Film
When considering these hurdles, I began talking with a good friend of mine who is a well-respected audience-analysis expert who has spent over 25 years in experience marketing. We started discussing what filmmakers can do to overcome the significant risks that clients face in funding new film projects. The result? Something we call Audience-Powered Film.
It’s a storytelling model rooted in Human-Centered Design (HCD). At its core, HCD flips the creative process on its head: instead of assuming we know the answer, we design with the user, not just for them.
We’ve adapted this approach for film on several projects over the last year, and the initial results have been extraordinary.
Here’s how it works (warning, the steps seem shockingly obvious, and yet few people practice them):
1. GATHER (Insights)
- Interviews with stakeholders and subject matter experts
- In-depth interviews with real audience members
- Audience, story, content, and format hypotheses
2. IMAGINE (Co-creation)
- A 2-day concept summit with creatives and clients
- Co-creating multiple film concepts
- Testing the best ideas with audience members
- Final script and story plan crafted with real feedback
3. DEVELOP (Film & Experience)
- Shoot and edit a rough cut
- Screen that cut with audience members
- Revise based on real-world reactions
- Deliver a final film shaped not just by creative vision, but end audience
Section 4: Why This Works When Nothing Else Does
We don’t just connect with audiences. We build with them.
That’s the difference.
- When an audience sees themselves in the development process, they’re not just viewers – they’re participants.
- When the story reflects their real fears, hopes, and beliefs, they don’t just watch it – they share it.
- When the medium is tailored to their habits and their hearts, it doesn’t just break through – it lands.
Section 5: Who This Is For
This isn’t for every brand. But it’s exactly right for:
- Cause-based organizations that want to shift minds and move hearts.
- Philanthropic leaders who believe storytelling can scale good.
- Culture builders who know that the best ideas don’t go viral unless they’re designed to connect.
Section 6: How You Can Use Audience-Powered Film
Feel free to steal anything of value in this newsletter! First and foremost, I want to bless all of you reading this, so if something sticks and is helpful, it’s yours to use!
But if you’re thinking, “This sounds like a lot of work and I don’t want to do this myself,” we’d also love to help you. We’re offering a limited number of Audience-Powered Film pilot projects, with early-stage pricing to refine and validate the process.
Timelines:
- GATHER & IMAGINE: 2-4 months (driven by availability and audience access).
- DEVELOP & GO-TO-MARKET: Varies by scope but typically 4-12 months.
If you’re leading a brand or initiative that has something truly worth saying, let’s build something that actually breaks through.
Here’s to Human Flourishing!
– Ian