Archive for the 'Promos' Category

04
Feb
14

Super Spots V

By Yoda808 Leave a Comment
Categories: Promos
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Not even Morpheus could contain his excitement over seeing Grimlock's Super Bowl trailer.

Not even Morpheus could contain his excitement over seeing Grimlock’s Super Bowl trailer.

In what started off as a seemingly easy way to start off this blog five years ago, my annual ‘Super Spots’ post has become a beloved tradition. Though I think it’s getting harder to discuss and dissect Super Bowl trailers when studios are being more budget conscious and not participating as much as in past years. This year, only four studios had spots during (and before) the game.

It’s definitely been a sad trend, but I honestly can’t blame the studios. The price of a 30 second spot during the Super Bowl has only risen in the five years I’ve been running this blog–and I don’t think it will stop anytime soon. Two years ago the cost of a 30 second spot was $3 million dollars. This year it was reported as being $4 million. In my very first Super Spots post I postulated that the reason studios got in on the Super Bowl was because they have a captive audience to which they can announce the coming of their tentpole films. Sadly with the increasing price of Super Bowl advertising, I think the trend of studios continuing to bring trailers will continue to slide.

Looking at this year’s crop of trailers, only one really stood out and I think the big reason why is because Transformers was giving us our first look at the film. All the other trailers that were shown were from films that have had a trailer or two out already–basically it was sort of stuff we’ve seen before. If you’re spending $4 million dollars or more and have only got 30 seconds to get your point across, you’ve got to bring your show stopper; something that will blow people away. A good case in point . . . last year’s big game spot for Furious 6. You remember that one don’t you? The one that introduced us to “vehicular warfare” and ended with a car exploding out of the nose of a plane. Need I say more?

Like I said, only one trailer this year sort of had that level of cool while the rest were just kinda meh. Here’s a rundown of this year’s Super Bowl trailers and my rating on how excited each of these got me for their impending release.

Draft Day :: Pre-game :: Excitement Level – 2/5

A trailer for a movie about the NFL, authorized by the NFL, and playing during the Super Bowl . . . talk about home field advantage. Under the endorsement of the NFL (they wouldn’t be able to use real teams or NFL logos if they didn’t) Draft Day makes perfect use of its Super Bowl spot to announce to everyone that this movie is where the next season starts for the NFL. While dramatizing the draft might not seem all that exciting, I like what Summit did here by co-opting all the hype around the NFL draft and directing it towards a dramatization of the draft. From playing on the “season starts with the draft” mantra, to Denis Leary’s proclamation as the Cleveland Browns coach that “this city deserves a championship”, to the montage of intense draft day negotiations, hopefully Draft Day can wrangle in some of the 111 million football fans watching the final game of the season.

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Captain America: The Winter Soldier :: Pre-game :: First Reaction :: Excitement Level – 3/5

Marvel couldn’t have picked out a better place to debut their trailer than in the area of the broadcast sandwiched in between America the Beautiful and the National Anthem. Aside from the smart placement and the common themes of patriotism that came with it, all they really had was old footage set to a slow instrumental of a violin playing America the Beautiful. Ending with the Winter Soldier punching Cap’s shield to top off the trailer was great and all, but there wasn’t much to get excited about. Except for when they direct you to the second full length trailer online. I’ll give them an extra point for that.

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Noah :: Pre-game :: First Reaction :: Excitement Level – 2/5

Sadly I think most of the footage shown in this spot we’ve already seen. The one bright spot though was appearance of angels descending to Earth (in that one scene where yellow lights are heading towards Earth–maybe?). Hollywood’s got a bushel of religious based films coming out this year and from everything in the first trailer I couldn’t help but notice that there was no mention of God at all. I think you could tell the tale of Noah without bringing up God, but I think it would be pretty hard to do. Seeing this potentially divine reference says that they’re definitely keeping some stuff in Noah close to the vest, but still . . . I wished they had showed us more.

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Need for Speed :: 1st Quarter :: First Reaction :: Excitement Level – 2/5

What I like about this trailer is that they play up to their title with the quick montage of different vehicles going really fast. It gets your blood pumping a little, especially with the quick cuts of all the different drivers in the film–intensely driving. There’s definitely a bit of an early Fast and Furious vibe going on, but other than that, there’s nothing really earth shattering about this trailer.

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Transformers: Age of Extinction :: 2nd Quarter :: First Reaction :: Excitement Level – 4/5

Before the game I knew that Transformers: Age of Extinction was going to be my most anticipated trailer of the game because it was the only film that was going to give us our first look at the film. All the other films debuting spots already had previous footage of them out there, but this one, we were going to get our first look at Mark Wahlberg and potentially the Dinobots! With my expectations already high, the trailer definitely delivered the goods. From Optimus seemingly getting blasted by Galvatron (maybe?), to a flying dragon/dinobot Transformer; all culminating with what appeared to be Optimus riding on the back of Grimlock with a sword, the trailer blew me away and was by far the best one out of this year’s bunch. Doesn’t get a perfect score due to the Michael Bay factor.

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The Amazing Spider-Man 2 :: 2nd Quarter :: First Reaction :: Excitement Level – 3/5

The sad part about The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is that their first trailer just blew us all away with the possibility of the Sinister Six being in the mix. How do you top that in your Big Game spot? Well, you can’t really in my opinion. Granted we do get some new footage of Gwen and Spidey falling and Spidey rescuing a falling Gwen in another shot, but aside from that, the biggest thing this trailer gave use was the EnemiesUnite.com website. If you happen to mosey over there you get a nearly four minute long trailer which shows us the origin of Electro and more of the crazy special effects orgy where Electro shoots lightning at Spidey. Mainly going off of the Super Bowl spot I give it 2 points with an extra bonus point for an extended trailer online.

If you happened to have the pre-game broadcast on really early you might have seen a few more trailers for Monuments Men, Robocop, and Pompeii. They aren’t included in this roundup since they were on more than a half hour before kickoff and I simply just didn’t have time to wait around during pregame to look for them. Instead, I’ve got a few more movie related commercials that I thought were fun . . .

“The Truth” with Morpheus for the KIA K900 :: directed by Carl Erik Rinsch, 47 Ronin

I had heard about this commercial before the game, but actually seeing was just totally hilarious. Seeing Morpheus pull his “red pill/blue pill” monologue from the first Matrix was one thing, but the sheer hilarity from his pseudo-Matrix Revolutions Neo-like opera singing was the icing on the cake. Granted it was corny as hell, but it was still really fun.

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British Villains ‘Rendezvous’ for Jaguar :: directed by Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech, Les Misérables

What’s great about this commercial is it’s not only that they’re so right that Brits have the best villain roles, they also have all the best good guy roles as well. It’s so fun to see these guys really revel in their villain personas–even if it is exaggerated for this commercial. If there was a real movie with these actors in it all playing villains; I’d totally watch it.

With the prices for Super Bowl advertising continuing to go up, I can see a day when studios no longer advertise during the Big Game. With a decent trailer being at least a minute long, it might not be that cost effective or feasible to grab someone’s attention with a 30 second spot, especially with it going upwards of four million. As if this year’s crop of trailers show, the trend seems to be to cut a decent spot together, then direct everyone to the full version online–there by getting the most bang for your buck. I fear eventually the studios are just going to realize that if they’re putting their trailers online to begin with, is it really worth it to shell out $4 million for a Super Bowl sign post directing people to our trailer? Probably not.

19
Aug
11

Send a HELLO with New Pixar Postage

By Yoda808 Leave a Comment
Categories: Promos
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Next time you open your mailbox, you might see Wall•E, Buzz, Lightning, Remy and a few other Pixar characters in there with your mail.

I know that in the age of the Internet, who really sends mail things anymore? It’s easy to see why when you can stay connected with people through Facebook and any number of social media outlets, pay bills with a few clicks of the mouse, and hell . . . even text messaging is starting to supplant email as the most efficient way of sending a message to someone. Yeah sure we all GET mail, but aside from a few bills, most people I know hardly ever send anything of consequence via the United States Postal Service (USPS).

Maybe it was the two years that I worked in the mailroom during college that gave me an appreciation for our postal service (or at least a better understanding of it anyway), but I still like writing people letters and actually sending things via snail mail. I don’t know, just call me old fashioned I guess.

So what does it take for the topic of mail to end up on a movie blog? Well the answer’s simple when Disney and Pixar are involved. Just yesterday the USPS issued the latest batch of stamps that are part of the 2011 campaign and some of your favorite Disney/Pixar characters will now be making their way across the country on some very vibrant and colorful postage stamps. Together Lightning McQueen & Mater, Remy & Linguini, Wall•E, Buzz Lightyear & the aliens, and Carl & Dug each grace their own stamp:

The five stamps come together as a set of 20 and will set you back $8.80.

Since I send cards and letters to people pretty frequently, I was really excited when I heard that we were going to be getting Pixar stamps earlier this year. For me, it’s about adding just a bit more style and personally to the letters I send. And since I like movies so much–it just fits.

These stamps are also part of a larger USPS and Disney/Pixar letter writing campaign:

The U.S. Postal Service invites you take a moment and send a handwritten note to a friend, loved one, co-worker, dog sitter or whomever else comes to mind. Then, it would like you to stamp that letter — ideally using one of the new series of Disney/Pixar-themed stamps unveiled this afternoon — and drop it into your nearest mailbox.

The rest of the piece can be found over at the LAT Nation Now Blog. The USPS Disney Pixar “Send a Hello” stamps can be purchased at your nearest post office as well as online through the USPS.com website.

And here are larger images of the stamps themselves as well:

Backside of the stamp sheet. Click for a larger image to read.

20
Apr
11

[Photos] Random Movie Stuff

By Yoda808 Leave a Comment
Categories: Promos
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So, just got a bunch of different movie swag that I thought I would post. Nothing really related to anything, but it might be worth a look to check out as well as to see what the studios sink their marketing money into. The first bunch of photos are actually movie marketing items while the last section are some goodies I got via social media.

Source Code Prize Pack

So at the end of last month we gave away several prize packs in conjunction with the release of Source Code. This is the bag of goodies we gave away.

Two Source Code shirts were included in the prize pack. A large design graced the front of the shirt and a smaller release date & QR code design was on the back.

Close up of the front of the Source Code shirt.

Close up of the design on the back of the Source Code shirt.

Also included with the prize pack were Source Code luggage tags.

The Source Code hat also followed the similar design of the t-shirts with the title of the film on the front and the QR code on the back.


Hanna & Soul Surfer Promo Items

Shirt promoting the film Hanna with tagline of the film front and center.

Close up of the design showing the repetition of the title which forms the overall design.

Dont know how they figured this was a good promo item, but they also made Hanna glasses towels.

And here it is cleaning my glasses.

Since Bethany Hamilton is sponsored by Rip Curl, this promo shirt was made by them and is actually very good quality. Most times promo shirts are made with cheap material since theyre made as cheaply as possible and are meant to be given away for free. Not this shirt.


GetGlue Stickers

I don’t exactly remember when I discovered GetGlue, but I do know that I actively started using it last fall at the beginning of the television season. It’s basically a check-in service for movies, tv, books, music, video games, and more. What I like about it (which also happens to be what separates it from its compeditors) is that you get real world rewards for the rewards that you get virtually. Usually with any type of check-in service, you receive stamps, pins, medals, badges, titles, etc for reaching certain achievements in the system. With GetGlue, depending how often you check in or depending on what you check into, you receive digital stickers for certain check ins:

While the digital stickers are cool looking and all, what’s great is that you can actually request to receive the stickers you’ve earned! Though there are a few catches, it’s still a pretty sweet deal. So far I’ve requested stickers three times and here’s the bounty that’s I’ve gotten from GetGlue . . .

Believe it or not this is the first "batch" of stickers I got. So one of the conditions of requesting stickers is that they only send you what they have in stock. Guess they didnt have too much in stock when I requested this back in October.

The second set I received had the maximum 20 stamps in it with various stickers I had earned. Needless to say I was much happier receiving my second order of stickers than my first. Another condition of ordering stickers is that you have to wait 30 days till you can request an order again.

Heres a closer shot of the movie stickers that I received in my second set. Got these for checking in to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, Tron Legacy, and for purchasing Avatar on blu-ray.

For the third and most recent request that I received, GetGlue changed the printing format for their stickers. I assume this new format is cheaper and more efficient for them to send out stickers with as theres no die-cutting (making individual stickers) involved so this method probably saves cost.

Needless to say you can kind of tell what shows Im into with the preponderance of Fringe, Glee, and movie stickers in these last two orders.

Well, that’s about it for the movie goodies. If I ever get a big convergence or some really interesting movie items, I’ll be sure to post them here.

23
Mar
11

Source Code Giveaway

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Categories: Promos
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Summit Entertainment

In anticipation of the release of Summit Entertainment’s Source Code next week Friday, the Red Band Project will be giving away Source Code prize packs to a few lucky readers. These prize packs will consist of shirts, hats, and best of all–passes to the Honolulu advance screening of Source Code next week Thursday, March 31. If you’d like the opportunity to win a prize pack, just email team@redbandproject.com with the subject header: Enter The Source Code Giveaway, and be sure to include your name and contact email. Submission deadline is 10pm Sunday, March 27. Winners will be notified via email by Monday, March 28 . . . so be sure to provide a valid email.

I’m pretty anxious to see this film as it’s from director Duncan Jones who gave us some real quality work with his last film Moon–an interesting sci-fi drama. This time around the premise is interesting enough and I’ve even heard it described as a mashup between Groundhog Day and Speed. I’m hoping that the story focuses more on the perils of changing the future rather than the tech of time traveling. If time traveling is just a vehicle to tell the story, then we should be in for a fun ride.

If you haven’t heard about Source Code, here is the plot synopsis:

When decorated soldier Captain Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) wakes up in the body of an unknown man, he discovers he’s part of a mission to find the bomber of a Chicago commuter train. In an assignment unlike any he’s ever known, he learns he’s part of a government experiment called the “Source Code,” a program that enables him to cross over into another man’s identity in the last eight minutes of his life. With a second, much larger target threatening to kill millions in downtown Chicago, Colter re-lives the incident over and over again, gathering clues each time, until he can solve the mystery of who is behind the bombs and prevent the next attack.

Filled with mind-boggling twists and heart-pounding suspense, Source Code is a smart action-thriller directed by Duncan Jones (Moon) from a screenplay by Ben Ripley (Species III). It stars Jake Gyllenhaal (Brothers, Brokeback Mountain), Michelle Monaghan (Eagle Eye, Gone Baby Gone), Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air, The Departed) and Jeffrey Wright (Quantum of Solace, Syriana).

And here’s a quick trailer to give you a better idea of what we’re in for:

12
Jan
11

Photos: Sony Open Takes Over Ward

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If you tried to see a movie last night at the Ward Theatres you may have may have experienced a slightly uncommon occurrence with half of the multiplex sectioned off for a private function. With the Sony Open in town this week, part of the festivities include a special “Hollywood” type of event at Ward where the Pro-Am golf teams are selected. Attendees are then treated to an advance screening of a Columbia Pictures (a Sony Pictures Entertainment company–and sponsor of the Sony Open) film, which this year happens to be The Green Hornet. In the past attendees have included some celebrities (I’ve heard Adam Sandler is a frequent participant) as well as the golfers themselves. Check out the photos below to see the Sony Open Takeover of Ward Theaters:

As with any Hollywood type event, you've gotta have the red carpet. The event blocked off the lane fronting Ward Entertainment Center so that limos and VIPs could get dropped off right in front of the complex and walk the red carpet all the way into the theaters.

If you were a regular moviegoer that night, this is the curtain partition that literally halved the theater.

This was the view on the other side of the curtain with Sony pulling out all the stops to transform the lobby into a Hollywood type event with vendors bringing in food, lighting, decor, and more.

An overhead view of the lobby.

One of the coolest things was that all the movie posters were changed out to the same movie poster for The Green Hornet. If you're going to buyout half a theater, why not go all the way right?

The big screens on that side of the theater were used to host the "Draw Party" and to screen The Green Hornet. In 3D of course.

Then there was this guy parked on the mid-level on the red carpet. Not sure if this is true, but supposedly this is the motorcycle that is ridden in the film. We'll just have to see.

Oh what it must be like to have enough money to buyout half of Ward theaters . . .

07
Dec
10

Special Pass Giveaway: The Kids Grow Up

By Yoda808 Leave a Comment
Categories: Coming Soon and Promos
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I think when people hear the word “documentary,” they tend to have already formed an opinion about any film that fits into this genre. I’m not going to lie, sometimes I myself fall into this prejudicial trap as well. However, I’ve been trying to broaden my horizons recently by seeking out a few docs that I personally find interesting, hoping to become a more well rounded moviegoer. It started last year with seeing Art & Copy at HIFF, then continued this year with two totally opposite films: Restrepo and The People vs George Lucas (still want to see Exit Through the Gift Shop).

Outside of these docs, nothing else really showed up on my radar till we were asked to participate in hosting a Q&A for a documentary coming out titled The Kids Grow Up. Good thing we accepted this challenge . . . otherwise we would have missed out on a really remarkable film.

SYNOPSIS
With his 17 year old daughter entering her final year of high school, documentarian Doug Block focuses on this final year before she leaves to go away for college. Looking back on his daughter’s growth as well as interviewing various family members, we get a glimpse into one family’s emotional journey and something that most college parents can relate to–saying goodbye.

MY THOUGHTS
In full disclosure (and as preparation for the Q&A on Friday), we were able to watch the film in advance of it’s theatrical run here in Honolulu. As I mentioned previously, I thought the film was engrossing and remarkable. You definitely get to see an intimate look into the lives of the Block family (Doug, Marjorie, and Lucy). However, what really drew me into the film was the lighthearted way the film unfolded. Here you have a very real and emotional subject matter with parents getting ready to experience the ‘empty nest’ which could potentially push viewers away. Yet there is just the right amount of humor interjected at various points throughout the film to make it fun, engaging, and relatable.

Another aspect that I enjoyed was the editing of the film itself. Using hours of footage throughout Lucy’s life, the film is edited in such a way where experiences that Lucy encounters at an older age are contrasted with video of her at a younger age. It is through this editing and juxtaposition that gives you a feeling of who Lucy is and how she has grown. In a sense it made me think about the way I felt as a kid and how that differs from the way I think now and definitely gives you a sense how things change as you grow older.

THE Q&A
The Red Band Project is partnering with Consolidated Theatres to present a special question and answer session after the 7:20pm screening of The Kids Grow Up at the Consolidated Kahala 8 Theatres. Filmmaker Doug Block and wife Marjorie Silver will be on hand to share their thoughts on the film and take questions from the crowd. Please join us for this very special event (purchase tickets here).

FREE PASS GIVEAWAY
The Red Band Project will be inviting five lucky readers (and a guest) to the 7:20pm screening on Friday for FREE! To be eligible to win just send your name and email to team@redbandproject.com. Winners will be selected randomly from all eligible entries and only one entry per person.

Winners will be selected by Thursday evening, December 9.

Vodpod videos no longer available.
11
Oct
10

Honolulu to Get 20 Minute TRON Preview

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Categories: Disney and Promos
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Following in the footsteps of last year’s megablockbuster Avatar, Disney’s TRON Legacy will be holding nationwide previews in select cities and theaters across the country on Thursday, October 28. The Red Band Project is letting Oahu moviegoers know that this preview is free and tickets will be distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis starting 10:00 a.m./PDT on the first “TRON Tuesday,” October 12, 2010. Information for ticketing can be found on Facebook.com/TRON.

Get your tickets tomorrow!

Here is the official press release:

WALT DISNEY PICTURES KICKS OFF “TRON: LEGACY” 10-WEEK GLOBAL COUNTDOWN

20+ MINUTE 3D SNEAK PEEK ELECTRIFIES AUDIENCES AROUND THE WORLD WITH “TRON NIGHT: AN IMAX 3D EXPERIENCE”

Walt Disney Pictures’ “TRON: Legacy” Opens in US Theaters December17, 2010

BURBANK, Calif. (October 10, 2010) —Walt Disney Studios announced today, October 10, 2010 (“10-10-10”), the kickoff of the official 10-week countdown to the release of “TRON: Legacy,” which opens in theaters December 17, 2010. Every week for the next 10 weeks marks a major milestone in the countdown as The Walt Disney Company rolls out exciting new TRON events, film content, products and announcements in preparation for the worldwide film launch, including:

  • TRON Night: An IMAX 3D Experience, a special event on October 28, 2010, that will give audiences worldwide the first opportunity to step onto the Grid and into the cutting-edge, 3D world of Walt Disney Pictures’ high-tech adventure “TRON: Legacy,” during an exciting 20-plus-minute sneak peek of the highly anticipated film, sponsored by Asus Computer International.

Select IMAX 3D theaters nationwide and 3D & IMAX 3D theaters internationally will offer a special screening of thrilling, never-before-seen 3D footage. “It’s exciting to offer fans an early, exclusive 3D preview of ‘TRON: Legacy’ in the ultimate of formats. We can’t wait for audiences around the world to experience the visually stunning and cutting-edge world that director Joe Kosinski has created,” said Sean Bailey, President of Production, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

Greg Foster, Chairman and President of IMAX Filmed Entertainment, is equally enthusiastic. “We are ecstatic that the Disney team and the ‘TRON: Legacy’ filmmakers elected to debut this amazing footage exclusively in our network of theaters,” said Foster. “This first-look in IMAX 3D is the most immersive way to bring audiences into the world of ‘TRON: Legacy’ and kick-off the countdown to the film’s highly-anticipated launch.”

Tickets to the October 28th TRON Night events are free and will be distributed for US and Canadian screenings on a first-come, first-serve basis starting 10:00 a.m./PDT on the first “TRON Tuesday,” October 12, 2010.  Information for U.S. and Canadian ticketing can be found on Facebook.com/TRON.

  • Beginning today, fans have the opportunity to purchase tickets to select IMAX 3D midnight screenings of “TRON: Legacy.” Tickets may be purchased at all participating IMAX locations and online at Disney.com/TRON.
  • “TRON Tuesdays”— every Tuesday for the next 10 weeks, exclusive new video and film content, including behind-the-scenes exclusives, trailers and artwork, will be released around the world online and through select broadcast outlets. To get the latest on “TRON Tuesdays” and more, visit Disney.com and Facebook.com/TRON.
  • “10-10-10” also marks the launch of Disney.com’s TRON: Get on the Grid Sweepstakes, featuring hundreds of prizes including a Grand Prize Trip for four to experience ElecTRONica, the new street celebration at Disney California Adventure™ Park. Details and official entry rules are available at Disney.com/TRONsweeps.

ADDITIONAL HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 10-WEEK COUNTDOWN:

  • Walt Disney Records will release the “TRON: Legacy” official motion picture Soundtrack, scored by the French electronic music duo Daft Punk, on December 7th.
  • In addition to new merchandise arriving to stores this month, Disney Consumer Products will debut exciting, new “TRON: Legacy” products and promotions, including a special line for women, a one-of-a-kind immersive retail destination for products and a unique gadget line for music and gaming fans.
  • On December 7th, Disney Interactive Studios will launch the next-gen video game “TRON: Evolution” for all major home video game consoles, Windows PC and handheld platforms.
  • Disney Parks is celebrating “TRON: Legacy” with ElecTRONica, a nighttime street event at Disney California Adventure™ Park, featuring a dynamic visual- and  music-based experience, a re-creation of Flynn’s Arcade and an opportunity to see a special 3D preview of “TRON: Legacy.” ElecTRONica runs from now until April 2011 every Friday, Saturday and Sunday night and nightly through the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday periods.

Information on all TRON activities can be found at Disney.com/TRON.

26
Apr
10

Toy Story 3 Goes Viral

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Categories: Promos
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The bulletin board in Keller Hall on the UH Manoa campus had some interesting notices posted.

About two weeks ago some very interesting and usual advertisements started appearing on bulletin boards across the UH Manoa campus. At first glance you could have missed them as they tended to blend in with the other myriad of postings that these community bulletin boards tend to attract. Upon closer examination though you might have picked out these ads:

If you notice, all the fliers direct you to BuzzCampusHawaii.com. Upon typing in that link you are then redirected to the Toy Story 3 preview screening for Hawaii. A few clicks and you can sign up to see the first 65 minutes of Toy Story 3 this Thursday, April 29 at the Consolidated Kahala 8 Theaters. The only catch? You have to have a college ID in order to attend.

While viral marketing is nothing new, I don’t think I’ve ever seen it tried out in Hawaii. Three years ago, the viral marketing campaign for Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight took geeks of the fan base by storm and asked them to decipher a number of different clues and tasks–each step of the way giving them access to information about the movie as well as creating a massive nationwide/worldwide alternate reality game (ARG). Since then a number of different companies and movies have tried replicating that success in trying to generate positive pre-release word of mouth.

The bulletin board fronting Hamilton Library at UH Manoa with Toy Story 3 ads.

While it was cool to see a studio try this out in Hawaii, I think it’s kind of a waste as all these advertisements do is direct you to the Facebook page that allows you sign up to come to the screening. I have to say though, whoever created the fliers definitely knew what they were doing as all of them blend in with the similar fare of other ads posted on the bulletin boards. From the handwritten text to the hand drawn artwork, it definitely looks like it could be legitimate. However inspired these fliers are, the age old saying is true: go BIG or go home. This campaign probably could have been something bigger and better with a little more help.

In any case, college students on Oahu will get a chance to see a preview of Toy Story 3 six weeks before it hits theaters. If you’re a starving college student, it might be worth checking out.

*UPDATE* The Red Band Project has learned that the the Honolulu Toy Story 3 “Cliffhanger” screening is now open to HIGH SCHOOL juniors and seniors (also needing to show school ID as proof). Spread the word.

22
Apr
10

Social Action from Participant Media

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Categories: Promos
Tags: , , , ,

Last night we screened a special “eco-aware” film, DisneyNature’s Oceans, set to be released today on Earth Day. As part of the promotion of the film a Social Action campaign was created titled the “Save My Oceans Tour.”

At last night’s screening, the culmination of the Save My Oceans Tour campaign for the Hawaii screening involved a number of non-profit and community organizations, with a focus on ocean awareness, presenting information on their organizations as well as letting movie-goers know what they can do to help save our oceans. The most notable aspect of this campaign was that in order to get tickets, each movie-goer had to pledge to reduce their use of single use plastics by using reusable water bottles and shopping bags.

As we sat there I marveled at the amount of careful thought, planning, and coordination put into this campaign. What can I say, I’m an event guy. Stuff like organization, mobilization, and logistics intrigue me. After talking with the guy that was in charge of coordinating efforts locally, I discovered that Participant Media was the organization that was behind the Save My Oceans Tour campaign.

Being a little more intrigued I did a little digging on Participant Media and found some interesting stuff. First and foremost is that they create a number of different Social Action campaigns related to films they produce, DisneyNature’s Oceans being one of them. These campaigns bring to light the real issues behind the film.


The mission of Participant Media from their website:

Participant believes that a good story well told can truly make a difference in how one sees the world. Whether it is a feature film, documentary or other form of media, Participant exists to tell compelling, entertaining stories that also create awareness of the real issues that shape our lives.

The company seeks to entertain audiences first, then to invite them to participate in making a difference. To facilitate this, Participant creates specific social action campaigns for each film and documentary designed to give a voice to issues that resonate in the films.

How cool is that? They had the great idea to say, “hey, we want to make good movies, but we also want to do good by encouraging people to make a difference.” I don’t know about you but I find that to be way cool. You actually might recognize a number of other movies they’ve been involved with and have done Social Action campaigns for:

  • Syrianna
  • Good Night, And Good Luck
  • An Inconvienient Truth
  • The Kite Runner
  • The Visitor
  • The Soloist
  • Food, Inc
  • and last year’s Oscar winner for Best Documentary Feature – The Cove

For each of these films there was a Social Action campaign that made viewers aware of the real life issues surrounding the films.

I encourage you to check out their website for more information on the company, the films they are involved with, as well as press materials, and their Social Action efforts.

Happy Earth Day everyone.

15
Apr
10

Bigger and Badder in the Big Apple

By Yoda808 Leave a Comment
Categories: Promos
Tags: , , , ,

Last month we took some vacation in New York City (Manhattan specifically) visiting friends and taking in the sites. We visited the usual suspects: Statue of Liberty, Central Park, Natural History Museum, and of course Times Square pictured above. On our very first day in New York as we were walking around we saw this scene smack dab in the middle of Times Square:

Yes, a viking ship in the middle of Times Square. At first we didn’t know what was going on, but as we ventured closer we realized that the big ship was part of a promotion for How to Train Your Dragon. Being the movie and marketing geeks that we are we had to get a closer look to see what was going on. Sadly though as we got near the ship we figured out that the promo had already wrapped up as they were starting to take everything down and put things away. As we made our way past the ship and continued through Times Square we saw a line with people holding passes to see How To Train Your Dragon waiting to go into a theater–classic sign of an advance screening.

Later on I Google’d the event to see what we had missed and found out that the event was actually much bigger than we thought. Apparently America Ferrera (who voices one of the characters) was there along with a bunch of guys/actors dressed in viking regalia in an effort to mimic the movie. All of this was done in an effort to promote the film in New York City. Like the title of this post states, they do it bigger and badder in the Big Apple.

Suffice it to say that it was pretty cool that we got to see a big movie promo being done in a big market (what was left of it anyway). I don’t remember anything of this scale being done here on Oahu. Possibly the biggest “in theater” celebrity promo we had (the only one we’ve ever had) was when Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa (of Mortal Kombat and Johnny Tsunami fame) was at the advance screening of Balls of Fury–but it just so happens that he’s a sometimes Hawaii resident so that was why he was here. The other big screening that I can recall was (that we didn’t go to) was when they screened Michael Bay’s Pearl Harbor at Pearl Harbor on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier. Man, wish I could have been involved with that event.

Anywho,check out the following pictures from media that was there during the event as well as a news report about the event:

How to Train Your Dragon a Fun Lesson in Times Square – Examiner.com

Photo courtesy JustJared.com

Photo courtesy JustJared.com

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