A 24-year-old made a 'modern TV Guide' on Instagram. Here's how he got 1 million followers and landed paid partnerships with AppleTV, Hulu, and Saint Laurent.

• Christian Dwarica runs an Instagram account called the Film Zone that has 1.2 million followers.
• By striking partnerships with media brands, he's on track to net six figures, he tells Insider.
• In an interview, he talks about his path growing the brand and what's next.

Christian Dwarica sat in his off-campus apartment near the University of Texas, Austin. It was mid-January 2019, the start of a new semester. He should have been studying, perhaps, but instead, he was pondering what movie to watch.

There were simply too many options, Dwarica recalled. So he turned to his friend with a suggestion: "What if I made a place for people to figure out what the hell to watch?"

A few days later, Dwarica launched an Instagram account called the Film Zone to give movie and television recommendations through stills and videos. The account has since expanded to post behind-the-scenes content and host live Q&As with directors such as M. Night Shyamalan.

Today the 24-year-old has over 1.2 million followers and has struck partnerships with the likes of Hulu, Tubi, and Saint Laurent to promote upcoming content. The influencer space is worth a billion, and striking brand partnerships with media organizations is a half a billion industry in its own right, according to Joe Gagliese, CEO of marketing agency ViralNation.

Honing in on his niche of "a new TV Guide," Dwarica says he's on track to earn six figures this year from the Film Zone. In August, he's hosting an Instagram film festival to highlight upcoming talent. He has plans to produce his own original content, too. He's currently working on a post about how silent films influenced people like Jackie Chan and Wes Anderson.

In an interview with Insider, Dwarica reveals the strategies he used to grow the account and strike key partnerships.

He posted at least two times a day to stay visible and keep up with demand

Dwarica wanted to study film in college.

Born in New Jersey, Dwarica also lived in Guadalajara, Mexico, before returning to the US with his family around the age of 14, settling in San Antonio, Texas. He studied advertising in college because his parents told him it would help him land a job.

Spoiler alert: It didn't.

So, he combined his knowledge of advertising with his passion for film, dedicating more time to the Film Zone throughout his final year in college, posting poignant images, quotes, and behind-the-scenes content at least twice times a day.

After graduating from UT Austin in December 2019, Dwarica started working on the account full time, amping up his output to meet fans' demand. Most traction is word-of-mouth, he says.

Within a year, it hit 500,000 followers, and Dwarica expanded into art, music, and anime. Interacting with people helped boost account activity, he said. He made sure to respond to nearly every comment and direct message.

"People still need to have reliable sources to discover stuff," Michael Dennis, founder of the production company ReelBlack, told Insider. "We're still limited to the same 24 hours in a day, but there's so much stuff being thrown at us. Something like the Film Zone is much needed."

Dwarica's following hit one million followers in November, after a boost during the pandemic. High-profile followers include Mark Wahlberg, Jason Momoa, and even Chance the Rapper, who told Insider he loved the account because it showed a "true appreciation" for film.

"You can tell they genuinely love every aspect of film," he said.

He cold-messaged brands to strike up key partnerships

After building a sizeable audience, Dwarica thought opportunities for branded partnerships would come running to him.

Spoiler alert: They didn't.

So he sent out cold messages from the Film Zone account to people working at places like Starz and Mubi. He would go on LinkedIn, find out who worked in the advertising and social departments. Then he cold-messaged them asking to chat for 15 minutes about why the Film Zone was a good place to park ad revenue to reach a large audience of Gen Zers and millennials. His elevator pitch: "I've got the people here - let's see if we can work out a deal."

The cold messaging strategy worked, and to date, the Film Zone has made eight advertising partnerships including with AppleTV and Hulu. Companies can pay to be featured as a highlight story at the top of the Instagram account, with the highest-paying company receiving the most visible spot. Right now the number one spot is taken by streaming service Tubi.

A spokesperson at Tubi told Insider, "we're always looking for fresh and authentic voices on the pulse of what's happening in film and TV," which includes the Film Zone's "passionate and dedicated audience of cinephiles."

He wants to expand into a full media enterprise

Next, Dwarica is planning a short Instagram film festival - something Dennis says could be "game-changing" for aspiring talent. Dwarica will select the top 12 films to showcase on The Film Zone on August 1. The top five will get cash prizes of up to $5,000, and the winner will receive a meeting with an LA-based management company.

It's a chance to highlight up-and-coming talent and Dwarica's taste in movies. He loves psychological thrillers, and his favorite movie is "The Shawshank Redemption." Amy Adams and Viola Davis are among his favorite actresses; Leonardo DiCaprio and Christian Bale aren't bad either, he says.

He wants to expand the account into a media enterprise, possibly including a celebrity TV show, a podcast, and a weekly Instagram show about movies. After all, every TV Guide has its Walter Anneberg.