Movie Marketing: Opening the Picture and Giving It Legs

By Tiiu Lukk

This text seeks to demystify complex marketing issues; profiling marketing strategies for films of widely varying budgets, genres and intended audiences through the words of those responsible for... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 187950538X
• ISBN13: 9781879505384
• Release Date: October 1997
• Publisher: Silman-James Press
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Interesting Insider Accounts of Movie Marketing

Anyone who has looked for books on movie marketing knows there are only a few books out there on the subject, and while those few are thorough, nuts and bolts approaches to the subject, they often make for dry reading. Tiiu Lukk brings the subject of movie marketing to life by allowing savvy movie marketers to tell the in-depth stories of their adventures in the field, to a great extent, "in their own words." We find out about each marketer's intentions in marketing their films (often focusing on individual films), their strategy, their execution of the plan, and the success and failure of their efforts. Readable, entertaining and informative.

Film marketing for the average joe

I felt that this book was very helpful in understanding what goes into marketing different types of feature films. I've read criticisms in other reviews that the book isn't specific enough in as far as critical marketing reasoning or the quantitative process in marketing these films. I agree, the book is sparse in demographics, statistics and what some would call "classic" marketing terminology. But personally, I think that's a plus. First of all, the book is obviously written with the presumption that the reader knows little to nothing about marketing or film distribution. Therefore, the ancedotal information works because it touches on the "real world" reasoning for why certain films were promoted certain ways (and it also gives expenditure breakdowns for each of the films' marketing budgets). Secondly, B-school marketing doesn't fully apply to film--as a "leisure" item, a film is not the same as a consumer product like mouthwash or a car. And regression theory is moot if a potentially influential review in the New York Times pans your arthouse film. I think Lukk does a good job in compiling information from the marketing executives who work with films, and I found it especially useful that she broke it down in genres. Marketing a self-distributed documentary (which she talks about in the section on the film "Brother's Keeper") is not the same as opening an action-soaked James Bond film (another chapter on "GoldenEye"). Actually, I thought the sections on documentaries and independent films were the strongest in the book. It also illuminated the open secret that it is nearly impossible to sell an African-American themed film to a white audience."Movie Marketing" was one of the books I cited in my master's thesis on marketing and distributing African-American independent films. I was so happy to see this book when I was doing my research, in that there is almost nothing published specifically on film marketing. Although the book does have flaws and could stand to be more quantitatively sound ("Entertainment Industry Economics" by Harold Vogel is the perfect example of such a book--but unless you've taken MBA level courses, that book may totally lose you), I think that it is a good resource on a sorely underpublished subject.

Great Insider Information

'Movie Marketing' was insightful and written close to the ground. I was happy to find a book on a subject I've tried to find insider information about for a few years. The author discussed marketing campaigns from recent movies to illumiate all points - a technique that made the reading not only more enjoyable but relevant. All stories were then put within a classic marketing context which, by comparison, either confirmed or challenged conventional movie distribution wisdom.

Fascinating Look At How Movies Are Marketed

"This book not only reveals a great deal of inside information on distributor strategies and their marketing expenditures, but does so in a highly entertaining fashion. It is destined to be required reading in Hollywood executive suites as well as a primer in film and business schools for many years to come." --Mark Litwak, author of Dealmaking in the Film and Television Industry and Reel Power