“Speed Racer,” the cinema film adaptation of a 1980s TV series, pressed all the correct marketing buttons in preparing for premiere, though it didn’t connect with audiences. The movie that cost $120 million to make premiered May 9 from Warner Bros. Pictures (UPDATE ultimately finished with a disappointing $44 million in boxoffice domestically, falling far short of … [Read more...] about Flop ‘Racer’ Delivers Dim Glow
‘Expelled’ Docu Rides Lawsuit Publicity
Sued by Yoko Ono for using a piece of John Lennon song, the producers of documentary “Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed” latched on to the dispute to generate publicity. The PG-rated “Expelled” would go on to gross $7.7 Million in domestic theatrical box office in 2008, which is blockbuster for the documentary category, where over $1 million is a hit. Rocky Mountain Pictures … [Read more...] about ‘Expelled’ Docu Rides Lawsuit Publicity
Mystery Billboards Tout ‘Dark Knight’
Warner Bros. Pictures mounts a teaser campaign for the next Batman film “The Dark Knight” that is built around a secondary character but does not mention the “The Dark Knight” itself. The creative is mysterious and one of many online-centric initiatives. Early in the “Dark Knight” marketing campaign, an official website for the film redirected viewers to … [Read more...] about Mystery Billboards Tout ‘Dark Knight’
Tracking Research Becomes More Unpredictable
Pre-release audience tracking surveys, which over decades honed into a precise science, are proving less reliable, which is causing considerable consternation for Hollywood film marketers. Movie distributors use tracking surveys to decide how to best allocate the $3.5 billion annually spent on paid media to advertise films in the U.S. market, and also publicity and … [Read more...] about Tracking Research Becomes More Unpredictable
Films Flop Despite Super Bowl Pop
QUESTION: What movies in the past three years had a box office gross that was so anemic that their later domestic cinema ticket sales was not even three times the cost of an average Super Bowl commercial? ANSWER: Read on…. With the kickoff to Super Bowl just two days away, it’s appropriate to review the curious relationship between Hollywood film distributors and the big … [Read more...] about Films Flop Despite Super Bowl Pop
‘Band’s Visit’ Thrives Despite Oscar Snub
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences disqualified the official Israeli entry in the Foreign Film category because its inclusion of English dialog. However, “The Band’s Visit” later managed decent boxoffice and was even transplanted on Broadway as an acclaim musical. Producers of “The Band’s Visit”-a quirky tale about a small orchestra of Egyptian policemen … [Read more...] about ‘Band’s Visit’ Thrives Despite Oscar Snub
Hollywood Stumbles in Foreign Affairs
As legendary Hollywood mogul Samuel Goldwyn once said, “If you want to send a message, call Western Union.” These days, a slew of pricey movies set against the backdrop of the Middle East/Afghanistan cauldron and that project distaste for the U.S. are falling flat at the box office. More such films are in the pipeline, and so worried film distributors are crafting marketing … [Read more...] about Hollywood Stumbles in Foreign Affairs
‘Magorium’ Gimmicky Scented Advertisement
“Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium” employs a marketing stunt placing a scratch-and-sniff fragrance embedded the ink of “Los Angeles Times” advertisement for the movie. “Magorium” is a G-rated family film scheduled for domestic premiere Nov. 5 from 20th Century Fox Pictures and producer Fox Walden Media. In overall movie marketing, newspaper advertising is in decline because … [Read more...] about ‘Magorium’ Gimmicky Scented Advertisement
Indie Snags Prints & Ads Funding
Prints and advertising funds provide marketing expenses for films financed with other money. Indie film company Regent Releasing says that its $50 million P&A fund hired Proud Mary Entertainment to find and contract marketing deals for its financing vehicle. Says a Regent press release, “The fund was established through Merrill Lynch to provide strategic print and … [Read more...] about Indie Snags Prints & Ads Funding
Official Websites No Longer Epicenter
Marketing movies via the internet across cyberspace is still relatively new, but there are already some significant twists in strategy. The official website is no longer the automatic centerpiece of a new media campaign and—in something of an irony—there is a budding trend to launch more than one website for the same movie. All this is a break from the strategy of … [Read more...] about Official Websites No Longer Epicenter