Writer/director Brady Nelson uses his independent film Outrage to make a point: you can’t always trust what you read online. This high-stakes drama, made on a modest $20,000 budget, tells a scandalous and timely story of corruption in mainstream media. Over the last decade, the internet has been heavily used to weaponize democracy. This results in hit pieces, callous invasion of privacy, and spreading fake news with the deliberate intent to cause chaos. Outrage approaches this unethical PR tactic from a new perspective, and exposes the ugly truth of media manipulation.

Witnessing a Political Scandal

Kevin (Alex Campbell) is a young investigative journalist who has been working undercover at a troll farm, during an election year, to expose a giant media manipulator. The son of a highly respected journalist, Kevin strives to make a name for himself outside his father’s shadow. The assignment he finds himself involved in, is by all intents and purposes, a career-defining opportunity. Kevin’s task is to swing the election for the far-right candidate. This involves planting salacious news stories at various news organizations, creating memes, and other low-level online attacks.

Watch the Outrage trailer here.

By playing along as a troll farmer and witnessing this company’s ability to manipulate public opinion during a critical voting period, Kevin’s goal is to expose the corrupt organization and its leader (Paul Stuart). However, once Kevin sees how far the company’s boss is willing to go to win, he realizes he may be in too deep. It’s a risky move, but that doesn’t stop Kevin from attempting to dismantle the PR machine before it’s too late.

How Fake News Can Have Real and Devastating Effects

Outrage shows the scary simplicity of how disinformation spreads with ease. The film feels particularly timely given our recent election and the discourse surrounding “fake news” and rumored voter fraud. It’s not improbable to imagine troll farms around the world aiding specific political parties and how that has a direct influence on the state of our country. Phrases like “ABC: Always Be Clicking” and “People don’t want to think”, indicating that the power lies in the hands of click-farm bots, are enough to leave a bitter taste in anyone’s mouth.

Set in a single location, an office building within an industrial complex, filmmaker Brady Nelson is able to build a pressure-cooker environment. Outrage moves very swiftly, much like a fast-paced newsroom. Close-ups of computer screens and text messages draw audiences into this digital world. At times, the depiction of the World Wide Web feels more like a jail cell.

Takeaway

Inspired by true events, these manipulation tactics are commonly used in our current landscape, from TMZ gossip sites to more political-leaning outlets. Outrage puts a face to these otherwise hidden ethical dilemmas of modern journalism and digital deception for all to see.