Movie industry

Film marketing into the 21st century

Film marketing: a definition

Cinematic products have a number of specific characteristics. Each film (and campaign) is unique: for each campaign, marketers have to identify the adequate target audience group and create adapted material. This is called "creation". Each campaign takes place prior to their release (if it doesn't work you are dead).

Films are cultural products. Culture can be understood as the works and practices of intellectual and especially artistic activity. Film marketing, as cultural marketing, indeed deals with agonistic, emotional, and symbolic experiences. Marketers have to deal with national trades that representation, and although marketing is universal, marketing practice varies from country to country. Practitioners and analysts of film marketing must thus be mindful of the link between the film (as a cultural product) and the spectator (as a culturally specific entity), whether in terms of nationality, gender, age, or affinities.

Film marketing begins at the new product development stage and continues throughout the formation of the project ideas, through production, and into distribution and exhibition.

The film marketing process

Strategic marketing

The target audience is identified by analyzing the film marketing mix (the marketing mix includes: director, actors, script, genre, age classification). Film marketers operate a segmentation of the audience, identifying a core target, but also a secondary group to which the film could cross over. Then, the team determines the film's positioning. Positioning relies on a film's selling points (one film can have several types of positioning, for different target groups; a film can also have a different positioning in different countries).

Big budget films for mainstream audiences usually benefit from a saturation release (= on a large number of screens, with a blitz television campaign). The peak season for these films is the summer and Christmas holidays. Mid-range pictures, often directed to a more adult audience, usually have a more limited release. An exclusive release refers to the distribution move restricted to a few theaters. A platform release is a limited release strategy: the film is first distributed in a few cinemas and then, as positive word of mouth expands, the number of copies gradually increases and the marketing campaign gathers pace. For art house films, the peak will be autumn, on the way to the Oscar season. For releases, marketers must also take into account specific holidays.

Operational marketing

At the distribution stage, it comprises the creation of communication material, media planning and buying, and publicity. Operational marketing is deeply rooted in local conditions (no ads for movies are allowed on French television). Product placement is decided upon at the strategic stage and activated at the operational stage. The production company strikes a barter deal with the brand, which provides the products in exchange for their presence in the film.

Marketing research occurs at the strategic and operational marketing stages. The ability to obtain information about the potential audience is vital, therefore market research holds a central place at all stages. Marketability is a marketer's calculation of all the elements of the film that can be used in promotion and advertising: the larger the number of advertising-friendly elements, the greater the marketability. Marketing strategies for big-budget films released by Hollywood studios will tend to integrate production and marketing, to devote a larger budget to prints and advertising, and to rely on saturation releases. Independent distributors will tend to dispense with research completely, have much smaller P&A budgets, and fewer distribution outlets. Independent distribution will favor the development of positive word of mouth.

Film marketing players

The largest distribution outfits are Hollywood's major studios (they have large marketing departments, and a large network of international distribution offices). There is also a variety of smaller distribution companies. To market their films abroad, US independent distribution companies rely on local distributors. Market research is largely outsourced to firms; also often externalized is the creation of trailers. Film marketing activities rely also on state players, who have a key role in the definition and operations of this activity.

Film marketing is to find the right signals at the right moment for the right people. The main tools use other posters, trailers, advertising in the media, and on the Internet. Before using those tools, one should develop a preliminary strategic reflection on the type of film one has to market. Cinema is an area where emotions, moods, and conversation with other people all determine people's choices.

The starting point is basic information on the film: the director, the actors, a few lines of synopsis, and that's it. In order to estimate potential attendance figures, they use comparables. They make the list of films by that director, or with these actors, or similar topics (this gives an indication of attendees). They analyze the release dates, attendance figures, gross box office, and number of prints. Release date is one of the most fundamental elements in the reflection. There is a clear seasonality in movie consumption. People tend to prefer action films or monster films in the summer, but other films in February.

Targets determine the position and the media strategy: campaigns targeting women will feature posters placed near the main shopping areas. To reach the female audience, ad spending will be made on websites dedicated to makeup or mothering.

Film marketing is also about understanding your market and your movie. You have to read the book or the screenplay and start to formulate views and ideas of how it might appeal, where its strongest and its weakest elements might be. And you examine it not only from one territory, but also from the point of view and interests of different markets. Marketing campaign adaptation can be about changing the timing or the appearance of a marketing campaign, the addition of elements that are particularly appealing to local identities, or the removal of elements.

Marketers can get to know a specific local audience through testing movies in front of audiences. It helps understand audience appeal. Not only movies are tested, but also trailers, poster concepts, and various marketing concepts to selected audiences. Sometimes backing a local expert gives a real added edge. Releasing everything essentially globally does not take into consideration local nuances. In certain cases, a global release is the right thing to do: for example, for established franchises and for sequels or prequels.

Marketers should be involved very early in the production process. Bringing in the input from local specialties can be profoundly important at the very early stage. Before the product is made, marketers would be able to understand what it is. During the production process, marketers should really be involved in designing advertising and promotional materials at the very earliest stage, from the point the project is actually being greenlit.

The evolution of film marketing

The most important evolution for film marketing was technologies and delivery systems and advertising opportunities they provide. The biggest leap has been the advent of the Internet, where you can very cost-effectively reach huge audiences and almost instantly create demand. The biggest difficulty for marketers is to make the product stand above the clutter. In film marketing, you need to have a unique identity, a unique product that is able to stand above the others.

Over the years, the importance of non-domestic viewers has varied. The international marketers have acquired a pre-eminent place in Hollywood, shaping the films that reached the screens. The establishment of marketing in Hollywood can be correlated with the movement of conglomeration in the film industry. The acquisition of film companies by large non-film-related conglomerates led to an evolution of the general mentality, putting a strong emphasis on minimizing risk and fighting unpredictability. Decision-making came to rest with a green light committee (a group of executives evaluating the break-even potential of each project). Marketing is a method to fight the unpredictability of the film business.

In this context, the logic of the marketplace is clearly the author of the style, rather than the personal vision. All the elements of the film are conceived in order to be easily extracted for marketing purposes at the distribution stage. Division from marketers is the creation of a visually striking image, which is iconic or emblematic and which can be used in the marketing campaigns (as the floating candle in Harry Potter’s Hogwarts dining room).

Film marketing begins at the new product development stage and continues throughout the formation of the projected years, into production, and into distribution and exhibition (Kerrigan). From their very early years, the Hollywood studios have had representatives around the world; international salespeople seem to have been quite autonomous.

In the 1990s, the Hollywood majors started to consider the world as one market sharing a common cultural ground, and push their marketing practices towards more uniformity and standardization. The homogenization of international campaigns was accelerated by two factors: 1) major films started to be released day and date (on the same day in the USA and the biggest international territories); 2) the development of worldwide merchandising plans which turned films, such as Jurassic Park, into global brands. Localization was not the favored option anymore.

At the very moment when Hollywood was dreaming of a homogenized global market, the world was actually experiencing a resurgence of the national, which directly impacted film practices. From the 2000s onwards, the "think new model became local when going global". In this new context, international campaigns came to be considered from the very beginning, at the same time as the domestic campaign. Distributing a Hollywood film now means coordinating between a central marketing office and the multiple international marketing offices (which were consulted on marketing and also on production issues).

International influence today

The majors will avoid dedicating a large budget to films with genres and themes too specifically American (the victims of this American syndrome are movies about sports (football, baseball), trials and U.S. history, as well as African American comedies). The influence of international marketing executives on greenlighting criteria has led to the "global development of what is called the elsewhere local-films; films which combine Hollywood production values popular around the world with internationally oriented elements. An example is casting foreign actors chosen to give an international feel to a film.

A second criterion influenced by foreign views is the growing tendency of Hollywood films to take place outside US territory. The influence of the international market can also be felt in less immediately visible signs, notably in terms of genre. Some genres are easier to sell as they are more popular with international audiences: action/adventure, visual comedies, epics, sci-fi films, and franchises. The importance of the international market has accentuated Hollywood's tendency to concentrate on the action-adventure genre.

One should note a more occasional practice that applies to markets of special interest: customized editing, where there is the creation of a specific version for one market (including or deleting some scenes and elements). Finally, it is important to point out that not all territories are equally treated. Markets of lesser economic importance, and in which the Hollywood majors have not directed distribution offices, are left unheard.

Case study: My Big Fat Greek Wedding and My Life in Ruins

This case study analyzes the two different marketing campaigns for the two Greek-centered American films. When handling films with a strong ethnic minority interest, US distributors tend to highlight stereotypical images in their marketing materials designed for the North American market. In this case, the campaigns for both films in the Greek context were changed minimally from the ones utilized in the North American market. The different profile of the two films in terms of their industrial positioning in US independent cinema impacted significantly on their marketing approach. The scope for adapting a US marketing campaign in different national contexts is very limited, which reinforces the role of the US distributor as the dominant force in film marketing on a global level. This case study demonstrated that marketing to a national audience using an ethnic image of itself, as created by U.S. media (however unflattering or stereotyped it may be), can be successful if some cultural references familiar to the national audience can be cultivated.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding

My Big Fat Greek Wedding represents a mature example of "indie" cinema. The marketing campaign aimed at targeting the substantial Greek American community. The campaign drew on techniques and practices associated both with the independent sector and the major studios. The former consisted of a more targeted and gradual buildup of audiences and a platform release; the latter with more aggressive and cost-intensive marketing practices and a wide or saturation release.

From the independent sector, the first aim of the distributor was to target directly the projected core audience, the Greek-American community. Adopting techniques used by the studios, this distributor utilized localized saturation advertising in the key markets where the film opened, such as local cable television advertising spots. With the film posting extremely encouraging results in the first few weeks of its US release, its producers decided to invest further funds to maximize the crossover into a more general audience: they tried to activate the adult women audience through advertising on extremely successful television morning shows.

In Greece, it was distributed by Prooptiki, a stand-alone medium-sized theatrical distributor with a portfolio mixed between US indie and studio films. The film was released in Greece in the summer season initially on 15 screens and then expanded onto 35. The marketing campaign in Greece relied almost exclusively on materials provided by the regional production and distribution companies. The main aspect of localization in the promotional campaign consisted of the translation of the film's title, the promotional text, and the subtitling of the dialogue of the trailers.

My Life in Ruins

My Life in Ruins was marketed more upfront and aggressively, in ways that aimed to ensure rapid international visibility, and that were in clear contrast to the cautious, gradual, grassroots-based, platform release of the other movie. Its release reflected its status as an "indiewood" production. The US release was wide as it opened in 1164 venues. Right from the start, the aim was the wider audience. Aside from mature women (who are the traditional audience group of romantic comedies), the distributor anticipated that the film would attract a much younger demographic, through its representation of Greece as a place of sensual pleasure and sexual liberation.

The movie was localized from its inception. This localization started with extensive coverage in the media. In Greece, a different posture was adopted than the one in the US: rather than putting emphasis on the tourist experience, the Greek posture focused on the protagonist in her work attire.

Selling English humor in France

British comedies can be understood as a specifically national type of film. Some comedies were huge hits in the UK and were then distributed in France but attracted only small audiences in that market. The difference in reception between the two markets has different reasons: language is a significant one. Translating the comic, especially comedy based on language, is not an easy task. Translation necessarily means adaptation to the culture, tastes, and humor of the target audience. The cultural references are different in different countries, and it is tricky to find equivalents that would convey exactly the same comic feel. This is why slapstick, physical, and mime-oriented comedy can be exported much more easily.

There were comedies that had a better box office performance in France than in the UK; those were the social comedies. These films are directed by auteurs, who are recognized and appreciated in France and have had a faithful audience for decades.

Marketing British comedies in France

Distributors market UK movies in France using two main tools: titles and posters. The choice of film title is a part of marketing strategy. When a film travels outside its original country, the marketing team has three options: keep the original title, give a literal translation, or adapt the title. A major selling point is the reference to the cultural regions of the films in the title (include words like Anglais, English, British, England, etc.). Translation and adaptation usually aim to help the French gather while the film's genre and main theme are clearly and immediately understood. English, England, British, and Britain connote their type of humor.

In France, where advertising for films is prohibited on television, posters are critical in a marketing campaign. Many of the British comedies distributed in France had poster campaigns that used Englishness and symbols of England as selling points. The most notable posters made unsubtle use of the UK/British/English symbols. Another type of campaign that appears more surprising was used for some of the films which were big box office hits in the UK. These markets movies specifically as British comedies in France (whereas they were not in the original poster campaign), British comedy being a genre itself. Also, in the posters are included congratulatory quotes and references to festivals and awards.

British comedies that were considered art house by the French distributors, aimed at a niche market, were marketed the same way, with even more extensive use of references to festivals and awards and congratulatory quotes, but taken from quality, mostly specialized papers and magazines.