The document provides production details about The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey film: - Hollywood adopted a "go big" approach, spending between $200-315 million on production, more than the average $139 million movie budget. - Advanced technology was used in special effects and filming. - It was released in theaters on over 452 IMAX screens worldwide and had sold-out midnight screenings, setting box office records for December openings. - DVD/Blu-ray releases followed within 3-6 months and included many hours of special features, but piracy of the film was estimated at over 8 million downloads.

1. The Hobbit:
An Unexpected Journey
Summary!

2. Production
• Hollywood has adopted the ‘go big’ approach to film
making – Only Hollywood is capable of doing this .
Why?
• Average Movie : $139,084,697
(www.thenumbers.com)
• The Hobbit’s production budget: Between $200 –
315 mill. But it is not the only film to spend big.
• Marketing?????
• But it has paid off and producing all three together
has made it more economical.

3. Key Production Facts

4. Production - Technology
• Read your article and make a written summary of it
in your notes – include some quotes.
• Verbally share your article with your fellow
‘deskmate’ and tell them the quotes you think are
important (and why). They should take notes on
what you say but should not simply copy what you
have written!
• How important is technology in a film? Do ‘good
production practices’ like having amazing SFX
determine the success of a film. Give examples and
reasons to support your ideas. What other ‘good
production practices’ are there (e.g. quality
actors, scripts etc ? How important are these?

5. By the Numbers - Distribution
• Using the information provided answer the following
questions
• What was the highest number of screens this film was
release in – USA and UK
• What percentage of profits came from the UK (box office
only)
• What percentage of profits have come so far from DVD/
Blu-ray sales?
• What stats/ figures stand out for you and why?

6. Distribution and Exhibition
• Theatrical release
• The world premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey took place on November
28, 2012 in Wellington, New Zealand, with a full theatrical release in New Zealand
on December 12. The film was released December 13, 2012 in Europe, December
14, 2012 in India, Canada and United States and December 26, 2012 in Australia.
The last country it was released in was China – 22nd Feb. Why?
• Home media
• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was released on DVD, Blu-ray and Blu-ray 3D in
the US on March 19, 2013, (overlap with Theatrical Release?) with an extended
edition, with 13 minutes of additional footage and two bonus discs containing
approximately nine hours of special features, released on November 5, 2013 In the
United Kingdom, the film was released on April 8, 2013. (time between theatrical
release and DVD release?)
• Piracy
• The file-sharing news website TorrentFreak estimated The Hobbit: An Unexpected
Journey to be the most-pirated movie of 2013. The movie was downloaded about
8,400,000 times through public BitTorrent trackers in 2013. What different would
this have made to profits?

7. Distribution and Exhibition
• Theatrical Release
• On the opening weekend it was screened at452 IMAX
theatres around the world, which was an IMAX opening-
weekend record for December
• ‘Midnight screenings’ were a feature worldwide and sold out!
Box office takings for the midnight screenings in the US was
$13 million – highest taking for a December midnight screen -
Desolation of Smaug was $8.8 mill)
• DVD and Blu-ray Release
• DVD/ Blu-ray features included
• Look over the information on DVD and Blu-ray sales. What
things stand out for you and why?

8. How was the Hobbit Marketed –
Complete for Homework….
Traditional Methods New Methods

9. Marketing – Answer before next
class• In what ways have you interacted with the marketing
campaign?
• Was this marketing campaign a success? What is
your evident?
• How did the marketing campaign cater for the wide
and diverse target audience?
• Are there any changes you would have made to this
campaign? Why and how? Why not?
• Is marketing a key feature in the success of a film?
Why/ Why not?
• Is it money that makes a successful marketing
campaign? Why/ Why not?