I watched Kezia Williams deliver a presentation on what theatrical distribution at Pathe does.Williams shared that distributers work to create a successful marketing campaign for each film. I investigated the different aspects of a marketing campaign for a specific recent film like:
- Film website
- Film posters
- Film trailers
- Facebook
- Instagram
- Twitter
- Cross promotion/ product tie-ins (like Heineken and James Bond in SkyFall and Spectre, Toyota and Star Wars)
- News articles, interviews, award ceremonies
Kezia Williams explained that, in a congested marketplace, a distributor's aim was too position a film in a way that it stood out for its target audience. Similarly, Chris Besseling offered me a series of insights into how distributors market a film's USP (Unique Selling Point) such as its star cast, its provenance (such as literary adaptation or biopic credentials), its awards and good reviews. Matt Smith of the FDA tells us that spend on digital has increased hugely. For example, trailers are now cut for portrait as the rise of watching videos on phone screens is extremely large. Digital includes all social media platforms (like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and many more) that work as a synergetic whole in promoting a product. Matt Smith also refers to paid-for marketing as distinct from free publicity. Social media can generate viral marketing and publicise something for free!
I decided to do research on the movie Rocket Man which is a biography and fantasy film about Elton John and his rise to fame. For this movie, Kezia Williams was extremely accurate in saying that the distributers aim was to position the film to stand out to its target audience which in this case is extremely large as Elton John has elder fans from when he was in his prime time and also younger fans who look up to him. Because the film is based on a true story of the star, the marketing needed to be extremely clever and specific so people understood it was about Elton John and his story and so that people are also drawn in to watch it. For Blumler and Katz, audiences use media to gratify needs. Here, it is audiences as fans of particular talent, which in this case is Elton John.
Firstly, the film company used film posters to promote the movie and to get it into the public eye and make people remember it to watch it in the future. The poster for the movie definitely sold the spectacle and visuals of the movie, showing him in one of his trademark flamboyant performance outfits and clearly have a blast singing and playing in front of a gigantic stadium crowd. The poster also has a purple tint as well as light shimmering all over the image, this connotes the bright fantastical tone of the film. A second poster of a close up of Taron Egerton's (Elton John) face, where his eyes are obscured by huge, dramatic glasses with a reflection of a piano in the glasses, signalling the movie is about a musician, who in this case is Elton John.
The film released a teaser trailer and labeled the film as being 'based on a true fantasy' so is meant to create a kind of surrealistic framing of the story. By the teaser trailer showing off some of Elton John's most iconic outfits and styles, from glittery Yankees jerseys to the large cowboy hat and many more. Shown are clips of him as a young child to make clear to the audience that the movie is about him from his youngest days, or at least flashing back to them. The official trailer was released in late February and it offers a more complete look at the story, varying from John's beginnings as working as a pub musician when his name was Reggie, then also showing the height of his fame and glory, include the bad parts. The trailer presents his story as him trying to change his reality through the creation of one fantasy to another, like the wild costumers and other theatrical excesses. The trailer also includes more than a few hints at the sexuality he kept hidden in the early years, which clearly contributed to him feeling blocked from who he really was. The trailer is filled with his music which makes it a great selling point to old fans and also new ones. The trailer was an extremely successful way of advertising the movie, especially by first introducing a teaser trailer, then followed by the main one, drawing people in and keeping them interested.
On the movies official website, there is not a lot of information on there, however the display is somewhat original. The website includes interactive features helping to draw people in and become even more engaged in the movie and the story of Elton John. There is a feature called 'never ordinary' which is a photo-upload feature which allows visitors to add some sparkle to a headshot via a selection of colourful frames, Elton John glasses, text with declarations of strength or uniqueness. The end result can then be downloaded or shared on social networks which once again is a good marketing strategy as more people will hear about the movie when their friends share their personal image. Another interactive feature on the website is a quiz which people can complete. It is Called "What's your song", which has a personality quiz asking you a series of question to determine what Elton John song is the perfect one for you. Once again this is a very clever marketing strategy as it makes the target audience even more engaged in the movie when it is released. Additionally, there are more standard sections on the website, with videos, trailers and an option to stream the soundtrack, download or buy the album. This draws in viewers, making the movie more popular. On the website, Facebook is the only social media platform linked however for the movie, Twitter and Instagram profiles were created to have an interaction with the target audience and an official Giphy channel was created too. On Spotify, an official movie playlist has been created too, bringing in and engaging the target audience even after they have watch the film!
ADVERTISING AND CROSS PROMOTION
The first TV spot was released around the same time as the second (official) trailer, which cut down the story of John living a fantasy life into a shorter pitch for the audience while still including many key moments. Fandango announced in early may that it would give early access to watch the film to its VIP members two weeks prior to the release date in attempt to kickstart audience buzz and hype for the movie. This was an extremely exciting time for fans and made people even more excited to watch the film after hearing amazing reviews from other viewers! Just a few weeks before the movie came out, Elton John himself was used in an episode of American Idol where the contestants sang some of his biggest hits. This made the movie known to viewers of American Idol and was a good way of promoting the film once again, drawing more people in to watch it! Most online ads have used John in his sparkly Dodgers uniform as people are very familiar with Elton wearing this so it draws them in. Pre-roll ads on Youtube included advertising the movie itself and the specific soundtrack too, catering for both film lovers and music lovers. There were not many promotional partnerships, however one included Lucky Brand which created a collection of t-shirts inspired by the film and featured classic photos of Elton John. Another exclusive collection was offered by fashion retailer Mr Porter however those pieces were not as popular. Designer brand, Gucci, were involved in promotion because Elton John loved wearing their pieces so therefore was very significant in the role of publicity for the movie. People were drawn to this because if Gucci was promoting the movie, then it must be good.
The movie Rocketman was seen as a pivotal point for both Paramount and Taron Egerton as it was so successful so looked amazing upon the actor and the company. Appearing at Cannes Film Festival offered a moment where the general conversation about the film to be extremely positive and where there was extreme optimism that a potential Oscar could be won from this film! Cannes was extremely successful for promoting the film to the public, proving how successful and wonderful the film really is. The project so deeply involved the real people being portrayed which was had huge advantages on marketing where Elton John and Bernie Taupin and others have been available for interviews and appearances bringing more light towards the film.
