Sample Book Chapters
Chapter 6 - Publicity
It is not enough to conquer; one must learn to seduce.
—Voltaire
Publicity is the most cost-effective but is among the least predictable disciplines in film marketing. Film marketers do not control the extent of press coverage, whether positive or negative, or the timing of its dissemination. However, when everything clicks, a publicity campaign subtly saturates the marketplace with third-party endorsements of films via upbeat editorial coverage.
Publicity campaigns cost tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars per film, which is a small slice of overall marketing expenditure when compared to paid advertising. Publicity campaigns for Borat and Walk the Line—both Twentieth Century Fox release—have received industry awards.
The audience shift to the Web seems to have taken its toll on a Hollywood institution: the extravagant, splashy party. Instead of huge whooplas, film marketers are spreading their publicity budget over more and smaller events and publicity stunts, because more events offer a better payoff. Film marketers
In another marketing challenge, talent booked in media opportunities can misfire. In 2007, Robin Williams, while appearing on NBC Television’s Tonight Show to promote his film License to Wed, playfully mocked priests caught up in scandals. “Here we go,” Williams said as if frenetically playing a board game. “Find the priest, find the pedophile. . . . Move ’em around.” The episode got bad press and was a turnoff to moviegoers of faith, and the Catholic League later criticized his comments.
Campaigns to secure Oscar nominations are sketched out a year in advance, in part to select theatrical-release dates after sizing up the cinema market and rival films. The official Oscar selection process occurs in a compressed period running barely two months. Campaigns include private screenings for academy members; events such as cocktail parties with filmmakers and cast; direct mail (via both e-mail and postal service); ad campaigns in trade newspapers; and DVDs or on-line access of movies.
Chapter extracts in this section of the website amount to 4,000 words distilled from 110,000 words in the print book.
Text copyright © 2009, Robert Marich. All rights reserved.
Used here with permission from SIU Press.
Table 6.1. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voting membership by branch
Branch Members - Percentage
Actors 1,243 21%
Producers 464 8%
Executives 440 8%
Sound 412 7%
Writers 396 7%
Directors 374 6%
Art directors 373 6%
Public relations 369 6%
Shorts & animation 330 6%
Visual effects 264 5%
At large 254 4%
Music 235 4%
Film editors 223 4%
Cinematographers 195 3%
Documentary 141 2%
Makeup 116 2%
Voting total 5,829 100%
Source: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS)
Notes: The percentage column does not add up to 100 due to rounding.