MARKETING A BLOCKBUSTER

Deborah SheppardMarketing Director

Paramount Pictures UK

STRATEGY

CREATIVETrailer, POS, Print,

TV/Radio,Interactive

RESEARCHNRG, FAME, TGI

MEDIA Budget,

targeting TV, press,

radio, outdoor, Interactive

PROMOTIONSLicensed, Media,Retail, exhibitor

PROnline / Offline

MARKETING

MARKETABILITYKey Questions

• Does the film have an exploitable theme?

• Is the cast/director of interest?

• Is it a genre movie?

• Will reviews matter?

SETTING THE MARKETING STRATEGY

• WHAT – is the film – defining genre, what similar films have been released, is it commercial, arthouse – Positioning

• WHO – will it appeal to, who is the Target Audience

• WHEN – Timing is everything

• HOW – do you make your Target Audience aware of the film. How do you make them want to go and see it

WHAT?Genre

Who is your target demographic in terms of Sex – common sense generally prevails!

FEMALE ----------COMEDY---------- MALE Romance Period Suspense Horror Crime Action

Sci Fi

WHO?

WHO is the target audience

- Are they men/women?- Are they upscale/down market?- What age are they?- What is their media consumption?

- What do they do?

WHEN?

• When – is the best date for the film?

• When – can/should the marketing start?

HOW?

• How – do we raise awareness and interest?

• How – do we establish what trigger points there are?

STAR TREK

2008Sci-Fi ChannelAvg rating: 0.02Individuals: 13k

£49.9m total UK box office

2008Virgin1

Avg rating: 0.14Individuals: 77k

2008Virgin1

Avg rating: 0.18Individuals: 105k

2008Virgin1

Avg rating: 0.09Individuals: 52k

2008Virgin1

Avg rating: 0.16Individuals: 90k

Last two Star Trek films at the box office

Star Trek: Nemesis (2003)Star Trek: Nemesis (2003)

Star Trek: Insurrection (1999)Star Trek: Insurrection (1999)

Box office: Opening w/end (£2.7m) Lifetime (£7.7m)Age: 7-14(6%) 15-19(10%) 20-24(11%) 25-34(29%) 35+(44%)Sex: Male (66%) Female (34%)Class: ABC1 (60%) C2DE (40%)Core audience: 25+ adults (male skew)

Box office: Opening w/end (£2m) Lifetime (£4.8m)Age: 7-14(6%) 15-19(9%) 20-24(16%) 25-34(23%) 35+(46%)Sex: Male (60%) Female (40%)Class: ABC1 (64%) C2DE (36%)Core audience: 25+ adults (ABC1 & male skew)

Star Trek Selling Points

The passion & vision of JJ Abrams

“

A complete re-invention of an iconic property

Completely new cast portraying much-loved

characters

Supreme production values

* Quote from Paramount Star Trek Roadshow, 2008

Building the audienceThe bullseye Star Trek fan…

IF this was just another Star Trek sequel, not the biggest blockbuster of the summer

25+ male sci-fi fans (Trekkies)

Mean age = 42

ABC1 skew

Married

No children in household

Love to buy new gadgets (199 index)

Influenced by internet reviews (172 index)

First place I look for info is internet (159 index)

I am introverted (142 index)

Know what the Kobayashi Maru is

Speak fluent Klingon

Cringe whenever a red shirt enters the screen

NOT traditionally drivers of strong blockbuster performance

Making Star Trek the Biggest Blockbuster

MINIMISE

LEGACY (STAR TREK)

CONTEXT (SCI FI)

RETRO FEEL

INSULARITY (TREKKIES)

MAXIMISE

NEW CAST

ACTION/VISUAL EFFECTS

CUTTING EDGE COOL

UBIQUITY

SPECTACLEGEEK FEST

JJ ABRAMS’ STAR TREK

Like these…

Iron Man (2008)

Transformers (2007)

Box office: Opening w/end (£8.7m) Lifetime (£23.3m)Age: 7-14(20%) 15-19(18%) 20-24(14%) 25-34(22%) 35+(26%)Sex: Male (69%) Female (31%)Class: ABC1 (59%) C2DE (41%)Core audience: Males of all ages (15-34 skew)

Box office: Opening w/end (£5.5m) Lifetime (£17.2m)Age: 7-14(17%) 15-19(19%) 20-24(18%) 25-34(17%) 35+(29%)Sex: Male (71%) Female (29%)Class: ABC1 (63%) C2DE (37%)Core audience: Males of all ages (15-34 skew)

Therefore

CORE AUDIENCE

12-34 Males

SECONDARY AUDIENCE

All adults

12-34 male adventurous innovatorsAudience potential = 875k

Their mediaWho they are

Core Audience Analysis

What they think

People come to me for advice before buying

(727 index)

Really enjoy going out to get drunk (615 index)

I spend a lot on clothes (547 index)

Prefer to be active in my leisure time (350 index)

Like different people, cultures etc around me

(320 index)

Mean age = 24

High student index (305)

Single (247 index)

Renting (141 index)

Greater London skew (175 index)

Light TV viewers (Interactive TV is a good

idea (361 index))

Light radio listeners

Heavy poster exposure (Often notice the ads at bus stops (664 index))

Heavy internet users

Heavy newspaper readers

Light magazine readers

Media Rationale

‘‘The future of blockbusters’The future of blockbusters’‘‘The future of blockbusters’The future of blockbusters’

Broadly targeted (male skew)

Spectacular

Inclusive

Media Strategy Summary

• Associate with cool, iconic properties

• Dominate with impactful placements, formats and creative

• THE most anticipated film.

Media mix

Star Trek: Event TV focus

Dominating outdoor

Innovative online

Press Mags TV Radio

OOH Online Other

Phasing-2 -1 Release +1 +2 +3

Weeks

Blockbuster launch

Multi-media, concentration on A/V capability

Large formats, sense of scale

Promotions/premiere

16-34 Men

Blockbuster fans

Male-skewed media

Promoting word-of-mouth

Phasing-1

year-6

months

-2 -1 Release +1 +2 +3

Weeks

IN-cinema/publicity(Jan 08)

Main POS/trailers (Nov 08)

Blockbuster launch

Multi-media, concentration on A/V capability

Large formats, sense of scale

Promotions/premiere

Film fans/cinema goers

16-34 Men

Blockbuster fans

Male-skewed media

Promoting word-of-mouth

CREATIVE

Cinema Posters and Trailers

Usually the first visual material

• Teaser trailer first appeared Jan ’08

• Teaser poster first appeared Nov ‘08

Trailer - Teaser

• Regular trailer first appeared Nov ’08

• Regular poster first appeared Apr ‘09

Trailer - Regular

TV Spots

• Extensively researched• Spots cut for specific programmes /

audiences• Weight of TVRS

Creative

96 Sheet

Creative

Banner

Creative

Backlit 96 sheet

Creative

ITV pre-rolls

Creative

Lost roadblock

Creative

Fringe roadblock

Creative

IMDB Competitive targeting

Creative

IMDB homepage takeover

Creative

Sky Sports “Superheader”

Creative

Yahoo homepage takeover

Interactive

• Teaser & official website

• Downloads (buddy icons, games, wallpapers, email signatures)

• Augmented webcam experience

• Fan Kit for sites

Interactive

• Social media fan groups (official Facebook movie page, Myspace Become a Friend)

• Social media widgets

Interactive

• Sony PS3 Home partnership (virtual Q & A, Avatar competition)

• Mobile content and gaming

• Video game

• iPod Applications/games

PUBLICITY

• Feed the Fans (set visits, blogs)

• Broaden the horizons (film mags, cinema goers)

• Boldly go where no Trek has gone before – true Blockbuster PR (Junket/Premiere)

PROMOTIONS

• Licensing• Third parties• Retail• Media • Screening Programmes – Word of Mouth• Online• Exhibitor• Film Education

Licensed

Third Party Promotions

Retail Promotions

Media Promotions

Word of Mouth Screenings • Vue Secret Screenings - 30 nationwide screenings - Generated positive buzz on social networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook, etc - Over 80% attendance

• Heat Screenings - 20 nationwide screenings - 85% attendance

On-line Promotions

Exhibitor Promotions

Film Education – Interactive CDRom

Film Education - Poster

SUCCESS OR FAILURE?

• Amazing word of mouth

• Phenomenal critical reviews

• Enhanced sustaining campaign

£20M

and still counting!