Viral FX and Experimental films are really similar. An experimental film takes a singular concept, a feeling, an idea, or a gimmick, then explore to the point where the viewer should be able to understand the effect/concept/idea/etc without being disrupted by story or other concepts/ideas/etc. This, of course, is a very simplistic definition.

Viral FX come from short gifs or videos which very quickly spread across the internet (as seen above), but wouldn’t be caught anywhere near a film festival. They inspire big ideas about filmmaking and film effects in an easily consumable format, generally without the need for recognition and compensation.

Viral FX should not be put down as less than an experimental film because the videos popularity already proves its effectiveness. However, we should not use the effect carelessly as it likely will not hold to the test of time because everyone has seen it already and it will soon be over used. To be forward, it can be a bit gimmicky. Does it matter? Meh, sort of.

If you’re the first to the scene with a budget and a large audience, you can make Viral FX yours. That’s right, if you’re fast enough, you can claim it, and every video thereafter using the effect will simply be thought as inspiration from YOUR video. Here’s a sample of what that looks like (note the top video came first).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=270&v=UbWDsEzMaAw

This video won’t win any oscars, but we can’t deny that it’s well done and solidifies a new standard for the effect at hand. So the question - is it dishonorable to take a viral effect and use it for your video? I wouldn’t call it dishonorable, or lazy, I would simply call this an exploration of an idea and I’m happy to get behind that. I say let the filmmakers play, and maybe we’ll see the effect in the next Scorcese flick.