ilm marketing is a big business and as screens become increasingly clogged with movies, marketing strategists are being forced to look at innovative ways of pushing their product and getting those all-important bums on seats. While innovation in film marketing was once the hallmark of the independent filmmaker and distributor, now even the big players are being forced to think outside the square.
“Film Marketing 101 is outdated,” according to Hoyts Corporation’shead of marketing, Anthony Thiessen.
He credits the internet and subsequent fragmented media consumption as key drivers for companies to spend more of their time and effort on developing campaigns for online and non-traditional media arenas. As the popularity of social networking sites such as MySpaceand YouTube grows, so too do the opportunities to help potential audiences “discover” new film product.
Palace Films has seven Australian films on its release slate this year, and as with most arthouse, independent or low-budget products, the distributor is continually looking at smarter and more economical ways to find an audience. With the increasing use of text messages and email, word-of-mouth on a film now happens almost instantaneously and is why many distributors are using sneak previews to help generate a positive buzz. According to Palace Films’ executive director, Benjamin Zeccola, his company now employs a variety of media, including in-store plasma screens and various online platforms such as MySpace and YouTube, as well as Bluetooth technology, to publicise a film. For Zeccola the bottom line always has to be: “How do I reach the audience and where do I find them?”
In an attempt to find the right audience for a particular film, Palace has also been more creative in its placement of print advertising; for the release of Kokoda, for example, it chose to advertise in the news pages rather than the entertainment section of the paper.
Palace, like many other distributors, has also been able to capitalise on a film’s strong showing at film festivals. Working in conjunction with various film festivals has also helped offset the costs of securing international talent for promotional purposes.
building pre-screen excitement
There’s no doubt that old-style marketing still has its place, and distributors continue to use the oldest trick in the book, star power, to sell a film.
While actors strolling up the red carpet can draw media interest, this doesn’t always translate to box office returns.
“You really need to pick the title it can make a difference on,” Thiessen says. “Local editorial coverage is still very valuable in promoting a film title—especially smaller budget titles that cannot afford an expensive media campaign.”
Writer/producer/actor Mick Molloy has just launched his latest comedy offering, Boytown. Molloy employed a grassroots marketing strategy to promote his last box office hit Crackerjack and it worked extremely well—the film now ranks among the most successful Australian films ever made. Molloy worked closely with his distributor Roadshow in the marketing of Boytown, as he did with Crackerjack, and offered his services to exhibitors who may want to add extra bang to their promotional campaigns.
According to Val Morgan’s sales director, Paul Booth, trailers are still “the most effective way of marketing a film” although they are becoming more erudite, with distributors increasingly choosing to tailor different versions of the same trailer to suit different demographics.
According to Booth, with large amounts of product hitting the market all at once, distributors also see value in using the cinema foyer to reinforce their movies. Even cinema advertisements for products such as 3G mobile technology will be reinforced with “touch and feel” sample products on display in the cinema foyer.
There’s no doubt that innovation can deliver rewards as a crowded market vies for a share of the audience.
Hoyts’ exhibition arm recently launched “Hoyts Gala Screenings”, showcasing the Twentieth Century Fox title The Devil Wears Prada. Prior to the film’s national release, consumers were charged $20 and for that they not only saw the film but they also went home with a $40 showbag with sample products.
“The concept proved a terrific hit with women who wanted a night out with their girlfriends. Some 16 Hoyts locations were sold out in four hours without any media support—just one simple email blast to Hoyts members,” Thiessen says.
flow-on effect
The importance of nailing a theatrical marketing campaign has a huge flow-on effect for the DVD sector.
US director Steven Soderbergh recently signed a deal with 2929 Entertainment honcho Todd Wagner to release his next six movies simultaneously in theatres, television and on DVD, which he said would give the consumer more choice about how and when they view his product. Soderbergh’s move caused concern amongst the US distribution and exhibition sectors, which argued that it only served to narrow the avenues for revenue returns. Marketing costs, however, would be reduced, as a blanket campaign could be launched that targeted all sectors.
According to Paramount Home Entertainment’s marketing director, Richard Clarkson, the company recently conducted a study of their clients which showed that 59% of people who buy a DVD have seen it before, and 33% of those had seen it first in the cinema.
“For a new-release title, the theatrical result is very important,” Clarkson says.
The sell-through market is being forced to become increasingly more innovative as well. Paramount recently released Naploeon Dynamite on DVD, a film which had only taken $541,000 at the box office. According to Clarkson, innovative thinking enabled Paramount to turn the figures around and to date, the company has sold over 90,000 units at an average price of AU$15.
“The strategy was to build on the cult factor of this title using word-of-mouth,” Clarkson says. “This can be achieved through the ongoing marketing of a retail release rather than a quick hit at theatrical, though the theatrical release was certainly the catalyst. You would be aware, I am sure, of the t-shirts everyone is wearing that say ‘Vote for Pedro’—that’s from the movie.”
There’s no doubt that merchandising can also help drive a film’s theatrical and DVD success. “Especially in the family and animated arena, the merchandising and licensing component and activity can be as important to any above-the-line activity undertaken for the DVD release. The constant message and awareness certainly adds value,” Clarkson says.
Paramount’s big Christmas push will be the animated feature Over the Hedge and Tom Cruise’s Mi3.
But as with many big-budget films, the local marketing department will stick closely to a template issued from the US.
“[However], there is then an ability to localise the activity as well as add local input to the plan. It is very much a combined effort of international ideas and objectives, coupled with local insight and strategy,” Clarkson says.
