PR6 - The Hollywood Blockbuster

When releasing a new film it is vital that it is marketed effectively in order to encourage the audience to go and watch the movie and as a result increasing the films commercial success, therefore the greater the marketing campaign the greater the commercial success. Without a clear understanding of the films target audience it is impossible to market a film effectively, therefore production companies will ensure that they identify exactly who their audience is by categorizing the films overall audience using demographics in order to create a variety of niche audiences, therefore enabling them to determine exactly how to approach the intended audience successfully. Audiences can be targeted by film producers through a number of marketing methods promoting the film such as posters, through web 2.0, TV and numerous other methods, all of which will be constructed in a way which anchors the films target audience therefore encouraging them to contribute to the commercial success of the movie by going and watching it.

Cinderella (2015)

Cinderella is an up-coming new film release within the fantasy genre, the film itself focuses on the ancient fairytale Cinderella in which after the death of her mother and father a young girl is left to live with her cruel step mother and step siblings slaving after their every need,. After the king insists that the prince finds a bride, a ball is arranged with every maiden in the land. With Cinderella's step mother refusing to let her attend the ball, before insisting the cruel step sisters rip her dress up; Cinderella is left devastated before being introduced to her fairy god mother who grants Cinderella's wish to go to the ball on the terms that she returns before 12, at the ball both Cinderella and the prince fall in love before she has to run off, leaving her glass slipper behind. As a result the prince arranges a search for the woman stating that who ever foot the glass slipper fits will be his bride, after finding Cinderella they both get married therefore becoming king and queen.

Directed by Kenneth Branagh, Cinderella fits into the fantasy genre and has a target audience of predominately young girls, especially those under the age of around 10 years old due to the fat that it is the typical fairytale which young girls dream of and features all the typical codes and conventions which attract young girls such as the big dresses, romance and the magic throughout. The marketing campaign will also attract parents due to the fact that they will be the ones who will accompany their children to go and watch Cinderella. This particular movie may also attract young female adults due to them more than likely growing up hearing the story of Cinderella they may be eager to see a contemporary film which brings the fairytale to life. The year of production for this particular film was between 2013-2014, the production company is Walt Disney Pictures and it is distributed by Walt Disney Studios and Motion Pictures with a budget of $95million. The UK release date for Cinderella is the 27th March.

There are many marketing methods in which Cinderella is currently being marketed in regards to its up coming release all of which anchor the target

audience, also due to it being a Walt Disney film, the marketing campaign is rather huge. Firstly we have one of the most effective marketing technique TV, by airing the Cinderella trailer on TV Thousands of people will be reached at one time, due to the target audience being predominately children the marketing campaign will anchor this, for example the Cinderella trailer will be aired a lot more on TV channels which have a target audience of children under the age of 12 such as CBBC, Nickelodeon any of the Disney Channels. The Cinderella trailer will also be aired on TV channels such as ITV which claims to be aimed at the full family, however trailers aired on these channels will be aired before the watershed when families generally sit down and watch TV together, due to the fact that the trailer will reach out to the children, making them eager to watch the movie who will then try and convince their parents to take them to go and see Cinderella. Another way in which the movie trailer is distributed is through the cinema, in Cinderella's case this marketing method will anchor the audience due to the fact that Cinderella is rated PG, therefore the trailer will be aired before films which also have this rating, therefore automatically reaching the intended target audience also due to PG meaning that children must be accompanied by an adult, airing the trailer before a PG movie in the cinema will not only reach the children but also the parents.

Another marketing method which applies to the marketing of Cinderella is Web 2.0, social network sites such as Facebook and Twitter play a major role in effectively marketing a film. Cinderella has both a twitter account which the audience are able to follow and a Facebook page, both of which are regularly updated, constantly promoting the film through posting various posters, videos and information regarding the release of Cinderella whilst also cleverly posting numerous quizzes relating to the film, therefore interacting with the audience, and as a result encouraging them to actually go and watch Cinderella. Web 2.0 also enables millions of people to share things such as their opinions on the movie as well as Cinderella posters and videos therefore again constantly promoting the film.

https://www.facebook.com/Cinderella https://twitter.com/cinderellamovie

YouTube also plays a major role in marketing this particular film due to the fact that their are numerous Cinderella film trailers available to watch on YouTube as well as featurettes in which the cast talk about their characters giving the audience a much deeper insight into the characters throughout the film Cinderella and allowing them to connect with the characters, therefore encouraging them to go and watch the movie.

Another marketing method is that Cinderella has its own interactive website http://movies.disney.com/cinderella/home/ which not only provides the audience with all the information relating to the films release but also allows them to look at various galleries, videos, downloads and character profiles, therefore encouraging people to go and watch it due to them already having a clear understanding of the film. The website also provides the audience with a Cinderella game, this directly reaches out to and anchors the young audience due to the fact that they will enjoy playing the game and as a result want to go and watch the movie. The website features an enchanted soundtrack along with various moving images which put an emphasis on the fairytale conventions such as the magic and princess dresses, therefore again anchoring the young female audience who are infatuated with princess fairytales, again resulting in them wanting to go and see the film.

Billboards and posters are another marketing method used within the Cinderella marketing campaign, numerous posters are in places which are more likely to attract our attention including, busses, bus stops and shopping centres. Newspapers and Magazines are also marketing techniques, events such as the Cinderella premier as well as any other news relating to behind the scenes will be published in numerous magazines and news papers, all of which will predominately attract the attention of adults, a prime example being http://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/news/celebrity/2013/09/24/cinderella-kenneth-branagh-lily-james,however this still effectively promotes the film due to the fact that if the person reading it has children it may encourage them to take their children to go and see the film. Children's magazines will also feature published articles and interviews relating to the up coming release of Cinderella, therefore again instantly anchoring the target audience. Word of mouth is also an effective marketing

method for Cinderella due to the fact that if someone watches the film trailer and likes it, they will therefore share the information with someone else and so on.

Anchorage simply refers to how a film producer will hook and draw in their target audience, therefore ensuring that they go and watch the movie and as contribute to the overall commercial success of the movie, a prime example being one of the most effective ways in which the producers of Cinderella have anchored their target audience is by producing a seven minute short film based on the Disney phenomenon Frozen, which will be aired in theatres before the film Cinderella. After being released in 2013, Frozen smashed the box office taking in over $1billion and became a huge hit with children all over the world becoming infatuated with the film and considering the animated characters to be icons. By choosing to produce a short film and airing it before Cinderella automatically anchors the target audience due to the fact that children are so obsessed with Frozen that they would want to go and see the movie Cinderella just so that they could see the seven minute short film which will be aired before it.

Throughout the next bit I will deconstruct a poster for Cinderella, identifying and explaining how this particular marketing method anchors the target audience.

in terms of the media text itself this is a poster therefore it will be stuck on numerous walls in areas such as shopping centres and cinemas, as well as on busses and bus stops, therefore automatically drawing the attention of a

wide variety of audiences. Taking up both the weak fallow and terminal area we have the title and the release date, both of which are placed here specifically due to the fact that this is where the audience will look last, therefore as a result this important information is what they will remember. The title itself is gold and stands out against the dark background and as a result grabs the audiences attention, the title will anchor the target audience due to the fact that almost everyone is familiar with the fairytale Cinderella, especially younger demographics who will be eager to watch the fairytale brought to life in the cinema. Also the producers chose specifically to use the colour gold for the title, which has the connotation of wealth and royalty and emphasizes the overall atmosphere associated with fairytales, therefore anchoring the young female audience who often dream of living the fairytale lifestyle. Also in this area we have the Disney logo, this instantly anchors the target audience particularly young children and families with Disney being one of the largest global media conglomerates, when seeing this logo we are instantly reminded of Disney's previous fantasy films all of which have been proven to be a huge success therefore it attracts the audiences attention, especially that of children who will then be eager to go and watch Cinderella just because it is a Disney. Also within the weak fallow area and the terminal area we have a prime example of star theory, having the names of the stars featuring within the movie such as Lily James, Helen Bonham Carter and Richard Madden it instantly anchors the audiences of an older demographic, by having these stars names printed on the poster it may encourage adults who are fans of these particular actors/actresses to actually go and take their kids to watch Cinderella.

When taking into consideration the imagery of within this particular poster it almost seems as though intertextuality has been used with the producers choosing to construct the poster in a way which the protagonist resembles the animated princess Elsa from Frozen due to Cinderella's striking blue dress

and blonde hair which is the same as Elsa's, along with the way Cinderella is posing and the wind which is blowing her dress which is very similar to the way in which Elsa is portrayed within the posters for Frozen as you can see from the image to the left. By having Cinderella resembling Elsa it cleverly anchors the audience, due

to the fact that Elsa is one of the most popular Disney princesses since the release of Frozen in 2013, with millions of young girls seeing her as an icon, therefore when young girls look at the poster for Cinderella they will instantly recognise the blue dress and blonde hair, associating it with Elsa and as a result encouraging their interest in watching the film Cinderella.

Before a film goes into production a producer will conduct thorough research regarding the intended target audience for the film they are about to produce, therefore using a combination of both primary and secondary research in

order to gain a variety of qualitative and quantitative data in order to not only to find out who the target audience for the film will be but to also ensure that the film they are going to produce meets the needs of the intended target audience. Primary research will include a survey featuring a number of questions relating to a number of aspects of the film they are about to produce such as asking peoples opinions on the genre, narrative and actors, which will then be distributed to a range of different people therefore allowing the producers to gain a better understanding of what appeals to different audiences. Secondary research will include looking at previously released films of the same genre, taking into consideration the commercial success they received as well as reviews from a range of different audience's therefore again enabling the producers to see exactly what appeals to certain audiences, therefore allowing them to use this information when producing their film.

Chappie (2015)

Chappie is an up-coming new film release within the science fiction genre, the film is set in the future when crime is patrolled by a oppressive mechanic police force, after one of the police droids, Chappie is stolen and is reconstructed in a way which gives him the ability to think and feel like a human being, with destructive forces seeing him as a threat they will stop at nothing to ensure that he is destroyed.

The film is directed by Neill Blomkamp with the year of production being 2013 - 2014. The production company was Media Rights Capital and it is distributed by Columbia Pictures with a budget of $49million. The UK's release date is March 6th 2015 and stars Shalto Copley, Dev Patel and Hugh Jackman. The intended target audience for this particular film will be predominately males, aged between 15-45 who enjoy watching films within the science fiction genre.

There are many marketing methods in which Chappie has been marketed in regards to its release, all of which anchor the intended target audience. Firstly we have TV therefore reaching thousands of people at one time, due to the fact that this particular film has an intended target audience of an older demographic that the previous film I looked at (Cinderella) the trailers will be aired on TV channels which anchor this particular target audience such as ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, all of which have a target audience which the producers of Chappie are trying to reach out to, also due to the older target audience this particular movie will be advertised both before and after the watershed. Another way in which this movie trailer is distributed is through the cinema, In Chappie's case this particular marketing method will anchor the intended target audience due to the fact that it has a rating of 15 therefore the trailer will be aired before films which also have a rating of 15 or over and as a result directly reaching the intended target audience.

Another marketing method which applies to the marketing of Chappie is Web 2.0, social network sites such as Facebook and Twitter play a major role in effectively marketing a film. Chappie has both a twitter account which the

audience are able to follow and a Facebook page, both of which are regularly updated, constantly promoting the film through posting various posters, videos and information regarding the release therefore encouraging them to go and watch the film. Web 2.0 also enables millions of people to share things such as their opinions on the movie as well as Chappie posters and videos therefore again constantly promoting the film. In contrast to the social networking pages which promoted Cinderella, the pages relating to the release of Chappie are a lot more simple and bland in regards to the colours used, therefore again anchoring the more mature audience that this film is trying to attract.

Again YouTube plays an effective role in marketing this particular film due to the fact that the trailer is available to watch as well as enabling the public to comment and share their opinions in regards to the movie.

Another marketing method is that Chappie has its own direct website http://www.chappie-movie.com/, providing the audience with all the information relating to the films release. The website automatically anchors the target audience for Chappie, the dark colours used throughout appeals to the predominate male target audience, in contrast to the Cinderella website which was full of bright, vibrant colours. Also in contrast to the Cinderella website, the website fore Chappie is a lot more simple and has a more mature look and feel to it. Billboards and posters are another marketing method used within the Cinderella marketing campaign, numerous posters are in places

which are more likely to attract our attention including, busses, bus stops and shopping centres.

Newspapers and magazines are also marketing techniques, any information relating to the production of the film, behind the scenes and cast interviews and posters will be published in news papers and magazines therefore encouraging people to go and watch Chappie. This marketing method will anchor the intended target audience due to the fact that in contrast to Cinderella, anything relating to Chappie wont be published in magazines which have a target audience aged under 15 and in fact will be published in magazines which have an audience aged between 15-45.

Anchorage simply refers to how a film producer will hook and draw in their target audience, therefore ensuring that they go and watch the movie and as contribute to the overall commercial success of the movie. A prime example of this would be star theory, this film features a number of stars including Dev Patel and Hugh Jackman who appeal to the older generation, which is constantly reinforced throughout the marketing campaign for Chappie therefore encouraging fans of the stars to watch the movie.

Throughout the next bit I will deconstruct a poster for Chappie, identifying and explaining how this particular marketing method anchors the target audience.

Within the weak fallow area and the terminal area of the poster we have both the title and the release date which has been placed there specifically due to the fact that this is the last place that a person will look when looking at the poster, therefore this information is what they will remember. Here it also informs us that Chappie is directed by the same director as District 9, a science fiction film which had huge commercial success back in 2009, therefore this anchors the intended target audience due to the fact that Chappie is not only the same genre as District 9 but also has the same target audience, therefore when seeing the poster it will encourage fans of District 9

to go and watch Chappie. The colours throughout this poster are bland in contrast to the Cinderella poster I previously looked at, with the title of Chappie being in white, therefore again anchoring the more mature and predominately male target audience.