It began with a clue hidden inside a noir film. A month, 70 million views and crowds of up to 1,000 later, two players found the case.
The real-world treasure hunt that started with a simple film clue has finally paid out. Jordan N. and Vincent P. are the winners of the $25,000 prize in What’s In The Silver Case?, the free citywide contest that launched when a clue was tucked inside the black-and-white noir The Man With the Silver Case. They claimed their reward on Wednesday, Oct. 28, during the contest’s in-person finale.
For an entire month, the movie’s fictional plot bled into the streets of Los Angeles. A courier dressed in a gray suit, handcuffed to a silver case and constantly shadowed by men in black suits, roamed the city handing out 4,000 calling cards. The buzz grew fast: roughly 700 fans swarmed creator Braeden Days at Santa Monica Pier, and the next day about 1,000 people showed up at the TCL Chinese Theatre. On finale day, players had to navigate across the city to a payphone that held a recorded message from the film’s lead actor, Stuart Reid. From there they tracked down the courier himself, and the final clue led them straight to the case.
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By the numbers
About 70 million views across campaign content
14,000 new Instagram followers
About 60,000 visits to lookagain.la
More than 5,600 registration submissions
About 100,000 views of the film on Prime Video and 40,000 on Tubi
The creators
The campaign brought together a wide network of creators from Los Angeles and beyond, including collaborations with Braeden Days, Dr Pepper Man, Philip DeFranco, Alex Pearlman, Jinx Ultra Violet, Lucky Card Erik, JasonTheWeen, Stable Ronaldo, Arky and Ripyz, who together command more than 35 million followers across platforms. Additional posts came from Editing with Ego, McKenzi Brooke, Fikshun, Girl Who Eats Art, Tracy Rehart, Jnizmo, Black Snow, Hyxx Gaming, Matthew Torres, Luke Mizel, Austun Reid, RE, Los Angeles Fun Events, The Film Memes, Cinema Solace, LA Explained, Los Angeles Bucket List and Places Los Angeles.
The reviews and coverage
Critics were won over as the hunt unfolded. INFLUX Magazine gave the film an 8/10, calling it “an impressive directorial debut that embraces its neo-noir influences.” Film Threat noted that “every scene is a stunning visual treat,” IndyRed awarded it four out of five stars, and Screen Critix described it as “an exceptionally confident piece of filmmaking.” The hunt and the film also earned coverage in LA Weekly, BroadwayWorld and 1883 Magazine, and the launch announcement ran on AP News.
“The biggest lesson is that people will invest deeply in a story when you give them a meaningful role in it,” said David Soltani, who designed the contest.
The Man With the Silver Case, Colin Best’s self-funded feature debut, was shot over 19 days on a single camera during the coldest Swiss winter in 20 years. It is streaming on Prime Video, Tubi and Apple TV. Official rules are at lookagain.la/rules. Photos and video from the campaign are available on request.
About The Man With the Silver Case
The Man With the Silver Case is a black-and-white neo-noir thriller written and directed by Colin Best and produced by Chris Martin and Beni Lehmann, with Colin Best and Joby Ogwyn as executive producers. It stars Stuart Reid, Lara Marian and Tom Ohmer. Shot in Switzerland and released by Freestyle Digital Media, the film is streaming on Prime Video, Tubi and Apple TV.
Zac Hunter
Thelemata, LLC
+1 757-304-2279
zac@thelemata.com
Why it matters: This contest proves that a small, self-funded indie film can generate massive audience engagement — 70 million views and thousands of participants — by turning viewers into active players. As streaming competition grows, studios may increasingly borrow this playbook to build buzz without a traditional marketing budget.
