Uplifting martial relationship drama “Fireproof” beat long odds to be last year’s top grossing indie film with $33 million in domestic box office via Samuel Goldwyn Distribution. Marketing targeted the Christian audience that is sometimes called the faith demographic. At its widest distribution, "Fireproof" played at 905 theaters, according to Boxofficemojo.com, which … [Read more...] about Top Indie ‘Fireproof’ Warms Christian Demo
Film Marketer Dials Up Bombast
Lionsgate’s chief theatrical film marketer Tim Palen gets a flattering profile in “New Yorker,” which pegs his style as hard charging. Palen blasts publicity at every opportunity and spares the subtleties. That's in contrast to most other film marketers who choreograph cinema campaigns into segmented waves that grow increasingly larger. “Many Hollywood marketers … [Read more...] about Film Marketer Dials Up Bombast
Oscar Films Roll Out Gradually
Oscar contenders are being screened all over Hollywood for industry insiders who are award voters, but have barely cracked the heartland of America, according to a “New York Times” article. That’s because distribution strategies call for slow roll-outs to theaters in increments. Notes the article by Michael Cieply, “‘Frost/Nixon,’ described far and wide as a favorite in the … [Read more...] about Oscar Films Roll Out Gradually
Financiers Drive MGM Marketing Spend?
Did MGM goose up “Valkyrie” marketing spend to trigger third-party monetization? Corporate decisions about how much marketing spending a movie gets often hinge on hidden considerations, which a New York Post article says is the case with “Valkyrie–the Tom Cruise-fronted thriller set in the Nazi high command. In a story headlined “MGM goes for broke on ad campaign for … [Read more...] about Financiers Drive MGM Marketing Spend?
‘Delgo’ Flop Highlights Risks For Outsiders
A tech-industry tycoon thought that he saw a void in the children’s animation movie business and stepped up with his own $40 million production of animated fantasy “Delgo.” This sounds like the start of a fairy tale story, but this one has an unhappy ending. “Delgo”--which was reportedly supported by a $20 million theatrical marketing campaign--is one of the all-time bombs … [Read more...] about ‘Delgo’ Flop Highlights Risks For Outsiders
Angelina Jolie Stage-Manages People?
A New York Times article reveals that People magazine let actress Angelina Jolie tailor the celebrity magazine’s future coverage of her as part of a deal for exclusive baby pictures. People – owned by Time Warner Inc. – denies that allegation in the story. It’s not hard to believe film stars and their publicists call the shots with celebrity media – TV shows, magazines and … [Read more...] about Angelina Jolie Stage-Manages People?
Fans Make “Twilight” Merchandise
Movie-themed merchandise for the film adaptation of “Twilight” gets a promotional lift on website CafePress, which offers direct to consumer sales of tee-shirts, buttons, stationary, posters and the like. Customers can select a surprisingly large number of Twilight-themed images that appear on various products, citing 6,000 products. Separately, the soundtrack … [Read more...] about Fans Make “Twilight” Merchandise
007’s ‘Quantum’ Overflows With Commercialization
The next James Bond 007 spy thriller comes packed with merchandise, product placement, marketing promotions and some complaints of overdoing it on the commercialization front. But a reality is that fans of the spy-thriller movies seem to enjoy the product glitz in overdrive. Some pundits in the UK suggest product placement and promotional tie-ins for “Quantum of Solace” are … [Read more...] about 007’s ‘Quantum’ Overflows With Commercialization
Oliver Stone Film Nabs P&A Funding
Oliver Stone’s “W.” movie about President George W. Bush cobbled together $30 million in financing from overseas sources because investors in the U.S. found the project uncommercial. A “Wall Street Journal” article notes that an Australian company – Omnilab Media – invested another $25 million to pay for marketing costs-referred to as prints-and-advertising (or … [Read more...] about Oliver Stone Film Nabs P&A Funding
Financing Set for Digital Cinema
Four major studios and the biggest independent agreed this week to help fund a consortium of movie theater owners to convert to electronic digital film projection to replace mechanical projectors. Digital cinema has been stalled for a decade, because of questions if the technology was not ready, making movie companies unwilling to invest in what could be soon-obsolete … [Read more...] about Financing Set for Digital Cinema