2. Marketing
After a studio spends millions dollars on making the movie, so to make sure
they get a return on their investment they spend millions on marketing to get
people in the theatres to see it (this is usually 50% of the budget of the film).
The film itself must be a hit on it’s opening weekend otherwise they tend to
disappear quickly and the studio ends up making a loss, this is why most of
the films that get green lit usually have an audience waiting for it, hence a
lot of films based on an already popular films, books and comics.
Original movies are usually the exception, and represent a huge risk for the
studios backing them.
3. Brand Loyalty
Cinema tickets are usually one-off purchases, you don’t buy a ticket in the
same way you buy a soft drink, i.e. going back again and again. This is
because the audience bases it’s a decision based on the marketing of the
product, though the audience may be loyal towards that product (buying
merchandise, soundtracks ,etc.), it’s a short lived loyalty.
This is why with every new release the studio needs to sell the film in this
way in a way to sell a lot of merchandise while there is a appetite for it, to do
this they must create a brand.
This is why studios like genre movies, as there is already an audience for that
type of film. They also use stars for this as well.
4. Shelf Life
Films have a limited distribution window and therefore a limited shelf life.
The marketing for a film must happen at the right to get the audiences into
cinemas, and keep them coming. Studios may begin to start marketing the
film six to eight months before the release- this is done to create anticipation
for the product.
Films can only be marketed effectively prior to the release, the campaign can
only run until the film has been released after that the cat is out of the
proverbial bag, and so word of mouth takes over.
It’s also not unknown for certain films to be recut after a poor reception at
film festivals, like “Southland Tales”.
5. Word Of Mouth
Word of mouth has always been a factor in whether a film will be a success or
not, but in todays social networked world, it has been vitally important for
the sales of the film, as many look to social media and blogs for movie
reviews, leading to positive reactions creating a buzz around a certain film,
and negative reactions can lead to a decline in ticket sales.
An example of this is 2009’s ‘Bruno’ whose ticket sales nosedived after
negative reactions from early screenings.
