The United States Postal Service adds Disney’s Pixar animation characters to the pantheon of Hollywood luminaries that have graced postage stamps. Some 125 million stamps in total will be issued with five different mixes of Pixar characters including Nemo and Squirt from “Finding Nemo," and Woody, Bullseye and Jessie from “Toy Story 2.” “These delightful stamps lift spirits … [Read more...] about Pixar Covers Postage Stamps
R-rated ‘Prometheus’ Nabs Promos
20th Century Fox’s sci-fi yarn “Prometheus” lined up major tie-in partnerships with Coors, Verizon, and Amazon, according to Variety. The Coors alliance is the brewer’s first movie deal in six years. The R-rated sci-fi film from Ridley Scott (“Alien”, “Blade Runner” and “Gladiator”) will premiere June 8. The Variety article by Marc Graser observes that R-rated films … [Read more...] about R-rated ‘Prometheus’ Nabs Promos
‘Marketing’ Book Gets Japanese Version
Public Interest Incorporated Association (Unijapan) in Tokyo -- which is a government-sponsored film organization -- licensed Japanese-language rights to “Marketing to Moviegoers-Second Edition” to train the next generation of film producers in the Asian nation. The book will be translated and parts relevant to instruction will be distributed to attendees at seminars and … [Read more...] about ‘Marketing’ Book Gets Japanese Version
Theaters Host Mini-Fests at Reduced Prices
Movie theaters are rolling out a range of special promotions to try to ingrain the cinema-going habit with showings of older films at discount prices. * Carmike and Regal starts a “Marvel Superhero Movie Marathon” screening movies with Marvel characters simultaneously on May 3 coming just before the premiere of "The Avengers" from Walt Disney Studios the following day. * … [Read more...] about Theaters Host Mini-Fests at Reduced Prices
Ad Giant Enters Film Research
The small world of Hollywood movie research just got a little more crowded with an affiliate of advertising giant WPP agreeing to acquire film research boutique Movies First International. The Penn Schoen Berland consultancy—which is the WPP affiliate—issued a press release announcing its buy of First Movies, which has offices in Los Angeles and London. The WPP behemoth has … [Read more...] about Ad Giant Enters Film Research
Conviction for Fake Vintage Movie Posters
Vintage movie posters are a big business and there are pockets of fraud for posters and lobby cards. A Georgia man who was an active collector and seller was convicted in federal court to 6 ½ years in prison for manufacturing replicas of posters from famous old movies and selling them as original. The convicted man Kerry Haggard “worked his scam by paying a New York City … [Read more...] about Conviction for Fake Vintage Movie Posters
‘Lorax’ Backlash
There’s a bit of a backlash brewing over the mountain of tie-in promotions for “Dr. Suess’ The Lorax,” which is the PG-rated family animated film from Universal Pictures set to premiere Friday. “I personally think that Sr. Seuss would only be disappointed that ‘The Lorax’ has only 70 product tie-ins,” said a deadpan Stephen Colbert on a Comedy Central skit. Colbert continued … [Read more...] about ‘Lorax’ Backlash
Unofficially Yours: Oscar Night Hanger-ons
It seems every Oscar season, corporate America entities without any formal association try to wiggle their way into Hollywood’s greatest night. Here are some outfits that jumped on the Academy Awards bandwagon without official status: *UK gambling site Sky Bet is laying odds and taking bets for all the Oscars categories. It’s got 10-to-1 odds for "The Descendants" to win … [Read more...] about Unofficially Yours: Oscar Night Hanger-ons
Wells Fargo Embraces Film Promos
Wells Fargo is mounting a flurry of film sponsorships as the nation’s fourth largest bank associates itself with Hollywood on several promotional fronts. Wells Fargo took the title of “official financial institution sponsor” for 20th Century Fox release of “Red Tails” in a deal sparked by two of its bankers who served as combat fighter pilots in the celebrated WWII air unit … [Read more...] about Wells Fargo Embraces Film Promos
Fat-cats Gorge on Sundance Glitz
The Sundance Film Festival loves to dish out an ecological “green” sensibility and project a we’re-with-the-people face. So it’s a bit of a paradox that outfits catering to the “one percenters”—portrayed as filthy exploiters indie films that are Sundance staples—enthusiastically latch on to the film event. They are in evidence as both official sponsors and indirectly as … [Read more...] about Fat-cats Gorge on Sundance Glitz