On Thursday 9th May, I
wrote a reaction commentary to an intriguing article found in
Variety. The original piece explored the notion that studios are favouring a more concept-driven marketing approach for major summer tent-poles as opposed to campaigns driven primarily by star-power and narrative.
"The idea is to sell a film initially based on a concept", says Par domestic marketing and distrib prexy Megan Colligan.
The article focused on blockbuster hopefuls such as
World War Z,
The Lone Ranger and
Elysium (see right). It claimed that setting an "
iconic" tone was the most important aspect of selling these movies.
I disagreed with this notion at the time of the article's publishing but opted to reserve overall judgement until sufficient box-office numbers were available.
Elysium is the last of this year's summer tent-poles to implement this marketing strategy. It was released in the US on 9th August and is due for release in the UK on 21st August 2013.
Interestingly, the film's marketing campaign has completely transformed in recent months, there is now less focus on concept and more on star power and narrative. Aside from it being a drastic tactical change, it does suggest that recent box-office disappointments have exposed the flaws within the concept marketing strategy.
Luckily for Sony, the film's distributor, there was still time to adapt and refine their campaign, which would allow them an opportunity to exploit the film's assets and hopefully avoid becoming an expensive box-office casualty, like Disney's
The Lone Ranger.
This article will seek to explore these flaws and the subsequent risks that accompany such an ambitious yet inconsistent style of movie marketing.
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