Young netizens are bored out of their wits. As the pandemic of COVID-19 continues, those at home find solace in entertainment platforms such as different groups and games created on social media platforms on Facebook (FB), Twitter, and Instagram to combat boredom. 

As most netizens are stuck at home, being entertained to combat boredom is difficult. From joining Twitter games, making TikTok video clips, to posting Instagram stories filled with bingo tags like school stereotypes and hobby accomplishments—these platforms have skyrocketed in the Philippine user activity.

Log onto Facebook, and one’s timeline is immediately flooded by memes and witty one-liners that were either shared by friends, or were recently posted on one of the many popular groups; one of the social media platform’s ways of connecting netizens with similar interests. Two of these groups are “film recs without context”—a group dedicated to film recommendation and appreciation—and “Subtle Clown Traits,” which is dedicated to comedic attempts at love and dating.

Online engagement at its peak

Through wit and relatable posts, these groups somehow bring people with similar interests together.

In an interview with The Benildean, “film recs without context” admin and Digital Filmmaking student, EJ Gagui, shared that the group started as a joke between friends who were passionate about film. 

“We became a community that helps one another discover new films and “without context” didn’t make sense anymore; because we began to socialize and give analysis about what we are recommending,” Gagui said. 

As context is becoming a norm of discourse, film-related memes are constantly shared. Gagui added, “It’s understandable that we are all looking for fresh stories to see while we’re stuck at home.” 

With its over 2,000 members and more than 30 posts daily as of writing, the group became a community for anyone interested in films.

On the heartier side of things, there’s the “Subtle Clown Traits,” or SCT for short, a group dedicated to “clownery”—defined as foolish, usually unsuccessful forays into the dating scene and ultimately, at love. 

Starting off with the group administrator’s friends from various high schools, and with no intentions of blowing up, there are now almost 337,000 members in the said group as of writing.

SCT is filled with thousands of posts that contain hugot lines, memes, screencaps of conversations with exes, crushes, and current flirtations. With comments flooded by friends tagging one another, it surely makes one reminisce memories whether it be cloud nine moments to shameful ones. 

As one of SCT’s admin Martina Estacion stated, “The group’s activity is at an intense level since a lot of people are at home with nothing to do. It gives them time to chat with their crushes and create more clown moments, and eventually, post about them.”

Scrolling, commenting, and relating

Finding ways to pass time, most students are tuned in to social media as groups increased engagements over the past weeks.

Other groups include “Music Recs Without Context,” “Lit Recs Without Context,” “Game Recs With or Without Context,” “One Big Fools,” and “Subtle Marupok Traits.”

Ultimately, these groups have brought a silver lining for individuals—giving them the space to discover new stories in an online community.

Sharing a good laugh or a daily dose of flicks with random people indeed entertains people during the enhanced community quarantine.