Case Study: The Lego Movie

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The Lego Movie (2014)Dir: Phil Lord & Chris Miller

Budget: $60milStarring: Chris Pratt Will Ferrell Elizabeth Banks Will Arnett Morgan Freeman Liam Neeson

Release Date: 7 Feb (US) 14 Feb (UK)Worldwide Gross to date: $468mil

Teaser Trailer

Main Trailer

Featurettes

Official Website

In simple terms, a bucket of plastic bricks (like a fast internet connection or a pair of shoes) isnt that interesting. What makes it interesting is the imagination of an eight-year-old who wants to make a huge tower, a spaceship, a plane, a tank, a racing car, a football stadium, a giant house with guns on the roof or whatever else I could come up with in the confines of my bedroom. Lego didnt sell those ideas to me, I made them up all by myself, and that is what will make the Lego Movie such a phenomenal success.Like many, Ive seen the trailers for the film and Ill admit, it is certainly appealing to the eight-year-old within me. Ive created those stories, where the good guys have to save the world from evil, on my bedroom floor and now I can see it on the big screen. Even 20 years later, this movie absolutely plays on my love for my favourite toy.

Much of the Lego Movies success is down to nostalgia. It is a product that has spanned generations and will continue to do so.Nostalgia is a big selling point.

The movie received more than 276,000 Twitter mentions in the 7 days leading to its release

Tegan & Sara on The SoundtrackIndie cult-favorite Tegan and Sara wrote a song for the soundtrack. The song has more than 150,000 plays on SoundCloud and is receiving heavy radio play. Enlisting an incredibly popular band with lots of street cred for the soundtrack was a really smart move. Tegan and Sara add legitimacy to the soundtrack, and therefore the movie.

Lego Gets CulturedAt the Discovery Musuem and Planetarium in Times Square created an exhibit dedicated to Lego, which opened right before the movie on February 4. The Art of The Brick shows that Legos arent just toys, but are art supplies in the hands of truly talented individuals.

Advertising should provide a value to your target audience, and entertainment is a value. People want to avoid boredom, and react quickly to entertainment. The movie also appeals to more than just children. With an A-list Hollywood cast that provides voices and a bit of their natural characters to the movie, it is easy to convince anyone to watch. Men, women, millennials, parents, etc. can all find enjoyment.

"You'll notice the film wasn't released at Christmas, the normal time for a big kids' film, and I'm sure what the directors of the movie would have wanted. But Lego don't have any problems selling bricks at Christmas. They do want extra sales in February, though."

The markets desire to see a LEGO movie was at its highest point. US sales of LEGO increased to 26% in 2012, and this growth is largely attributed to its licensing deals with major film properties (and The Lone Ranger).Lego is striking right now when it knows its stock is at its highest, and tactically using the strength of its partnerships to appeal to the largest audience possible.That's the other fascinating point about the movie: how it ties in all kinds of other franchise properties, from Batman to Lord of the Rings to Star Wars. It sounds like a ground-breaking prospect, although it is possible that Who Framed Roger Rabbit may have stole the march on that one.

The LEGO Movie will become a four-quadrant success purely because of our aection for the

product.

What could this mean?

A film which appeals to all four major demographic groups: male, female, and the over & under 25 year-olds.

The film was released on 14th February, think back, what was

significant about this date?

Half Term!And what does half term equal?

Celebrity Endorsement

The Lego Ad-Break

What are the benefits from a marketing strategy such as this?

The ads replicate the scenes and action of the spots in Lego bricks, set to the original soundtracks.The break was created by media agency PHD, with its sister content agency Drum, and is to promote their client Warner Bros's upcoming film The Lego Movie.The ads will appear in the centre ad break of ITVs Dancing On Ice on Sunday, at around 7.28pm. The final spot in the break will be a trailer for The Lego Movie and characters from the movie will also appear in between the Lego ads.PHD, Drum and ITV developed the break and commissioned ITN Productions and Bricksports to produce the Lego versions of the ads.Confused.com, BT and Premier Inn paid for the ad space and for the cost of producing Lego versions of their spots. The break is the result of a complex project involving approval from the three brands, Warner Bros and the creative agencies that made the original ads.David Wilding, the head of planning at PHD, said: "To support the launch of a movie in which the whole world is made of Lego, we came up with the idea of transporting ITV viewers there."Its a testament to the strength of the idea, just how much passion, energy and sheer enthusiasm every partner in this project has put in and we cant wait to see the results."The Confused.com Lego film features the Brian the Robot character speaking to some young people in car park and offering them advice on how to save money.Fiona Creedon, the head of advertising at Confused.com said: "Seeing Brian immortalised in Lego represents an iconic moment for the brand."The original BT ad, meanwhile, features the telecom giants three reoccurring flatmate characters.

David James, the consumer marketing director at BT, said remaking its ad in Lego "has been a lot of fun and is a great opportunity to make our customers smile".Meanwhile, Lego bricks have also been used to recreate a spot, "in bed with Lenny", from RKCR/Y&R's 15 million campaign for Premier Inn, which shows the comedian in a bed in various locations, including a train station and a forest.Russell Braterman, the marketing director for Premier Inn, added: "To see our latest TV ad in Lego bricks reflects the multi-channel approach we have adopted for our latest campaign - I love the innovative and relevant media first of the ad break."Braterman added that the Lego version would see "some of the UK's most iconic landmarks immortalised in colourful Lego bricks".

Activities include a Hands-On Learning 'Count Down to the Movie' and ticket giveawayUS bookseller Barnes & Noble is hosting a three month long activity campaign to celebrate the arrival of The LEGO Movie.The first event is a free Hands-On Learning 'Count Down to the Movie' which will be held on Saturday, January 25th in Barnes & Noble stores across the US.This event will see LEGO fans learn about LEGOs first-ever feature film and join in fun activities.Customers can also listen to The LEGO Movie theme song and enjoy a screening of the official trailer for The LEGO Movie on NOOK devices.Space is limited to 50 participants per store, and each will receive a mini movie poster.Other events in the campaign include a limited movie ticket giveaway in select stores only, and a LEGO-build events on Saturday, March 1st, where fans can recreate their favorite scenes from the movie.

Barnes & Noble is the only store that can offer LEGO fans the complete LEGO movie experience, and were excited to get the fun started with our premier event where customers will have a blast learning about the movie through fun and engaging activities centered around movie facts, movie music, and the official trailer for The LEGO Movie, said Kathleen Campisano, vice president, Toys & Games, Barnes & Noble.In February, LEGO enthusiasts will have the opportunity to go see the movie, and in March, theyre invited back to Barnes & Noble stores for another movie-related in-store building event."All of our stores will offer The LEGO Movie tie-in toys, games and books, making Barnes & Noble the ultimate destination to celebrate all things LEGO.