The Curse of the Internet Man

2018, 5 minutes

An online superstar influencer is deeply depressed after losing grip on reality. He seeks help from a psychiatrist, but is it too late? Shows how the social media can have a devastating impact on the minds of of those who use it

Merch is a young man obsessed with social media and the internet, spending 23 hours a day blogging and vlogging to get as many likes as he can to make himself feel important until he meets with his Psychiatrist played by me, Joyce Grey-Carter who tries to talk sense to him but to no avail. He becomes too entrapped and metamorphosises as The Internet Man. It’s a small short written and starring BBC documentary filmmaker Benjamin Zand. It’s a piece told through Ben Zands' poem about a man so addicted to the internet he becomes infected and metamorphosises into the internet. An expressionist nightmare about our obsession with social media and fame. Merch is an online superstar influencer. He's adored by millions online. But in the dark depths of his own mind he is faltered. He is deeply depressed and losing a grip on reality. The life he has created online is false, and the life he has in the real world is lonely and full of pain. He seeks help from a psychiatrist. But it is too late. This isn't an illness, it's a curse. The curse of the Internet Man. The only way out is for Merch to end it all, to rid himself of the pain of real world - and to embrace the nirvana of the silicon. The Internet man is a comment on addiction to the internet and virality, and the terrifying impact it's having on our mental health.

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