Sports Talk Without the Fuss

Many people dread the idea of sports talk. This comes from the almost animalistic behavior of many participants including the hosts on radio, television and the internet. Most find it terribly difficult to hold a rational discussion about sports because of the passion many find in their respective favorite teams. However, sometimes there are places where productive discussion can be had. I was fortunate enough to participate in a conversation with the sportsPRchat community. This community of PR driven individuals discusses the hot topics in the world of sports through a PR perspective.

The reason this chat interested me is because of my current internship with Ohio State Fan Experience and Promotions.  This marketing based department works to enhance attendance and in game crowd experience for Ohio State's 36 varsity sporting events.  I have loved the projects that I have been working on and have learned a great deal about what it takes to make a sporting event run smoothly. My fellow team members and I develop marketing plans and promotions then have the opportunity to execute and analyze their impact.  We work alongside coaches, players, and clients to make an OSU sporting event a true treat. If you ever see me at a game make sure to say hi!

The sportsPRchat community has a six question discussion each week that addresses some of the more pressing issues in sports. This week we discussed the impact of Danica Patrick on NASCAR viewing, Kobe Bryant and his response to Mark Cuban's criticisms, Sponsorship relations, were to draw the line with athlete defense, and the newest NFL advertising campaign.  The chat lasts one hour and attendance varies from week to week.

Overall I was very pleased with the opinions that many gave during discussion. Rants like you normally would see during a non-PR based discussion were not an issue.  Many younger PR professionals weighed in by presenting precedents that may have already established or used personal experience stories. Wins, loses, and stats are all things left aside which helps give the discussion a better chance at leaving out biased materials. The discussions will continue to grow and I am excited to see what is to come.

Be adaptable, especially at the last minute

Many people believe that shooting a movie is very structured and has little wiggle room due to budgets. This is very true. Actors are expensive and busy, the crew and sets are hard to logistically get into place and the release schedule is almost always permanent.  These things can be set aside however, but on very rare occasions.

Image Credit - Warner Bros.

One of these occasions took place last year with the movie "Gangster Squad".  This highly anticipated Warner Bros.  movie, staring Ryan Gosling, was initially scheduled to be released in early September. Then tragedy struck. Aurora, Colorado was the scene of a horrific cinema shooting which caused a crisis within the Gangster Squad family.  This movie had a very important scene that featured a cinema shooting. Leaders of the team took a long time mulling over what to do. On one hand this would be a very costly venture to change the movie as well as implement a new advertising campaign. On the other there was a huge chance that this scene could cause a firestorm of bad press once released.

Knowing the gravity of the shooting and the impact that it had on the american public the decision was made to postpone the release and rework the film. Many people were displeased with the decision but the staff at Warner Bros. felt it was the proper action.  The movie went back into production and the release date was moved back to reflect the work that needed to be done.  Though the movie did not perform exceptionally well in the box office it did not cause a stir that negatively affected it.  Some viewers actually respected the decision because of the relationship it would have given to the Aurora shooting.

Overall the change may have lessened the bottom line of the box office pull but the change may have been more beneficial overall. This late adjustment showed many that Warner Bros. does care about the world around it not just making money. It also showed us that late changes are possible setting a future precedent that may be of use to other productions in the future. Lastly it gave a big Hollywood studio a more human connection.  The adjustments were made to avoid reminding people of the horror that happened in a place were people go to escape the outside world.
 

To leave, or not to leave: that is the question

We have all done it.We may not care to admit it, but we all have been duped at at least once.  I'm talking about seeing a bad movie thinking it was going to be great.  Once you realize your mistake you feel like you have been betrayed. The trailer looked good, the actors talked highly of their roles even the posters were appealing! You are in the theater and you feel stuck. Some would leave, but others stick with it to remind themselves to never make the same mistake again.

This situation that many of us have experienced can be attributed to the fine work of advertising and marketing teams contracted to work with the respective film.  They are given a piece that may or may not be any good regardless they are still getting paid and it is their reputation on the line. These agencies are tasked with bringing viewers to the box office at all costs, so mild deception is not out of the question when putting together a media campaign.

Let's look at a movie that was recently released and gave us that sense of betrayal once the lights dimmed, "Movie 43". This movie was heavily advertised in a variety of markets and the buzz surrounding it was beginning to grow prior to release. It had an all-star cast which gave people a chance to connect with a number of performers. But, the thing that pulled in more viewers than anything else was the funny trailer that was used.  Take a look at the trailer below.

Movie 43 Trailer

It looks funny, right? Unfortunately it wasn't.  A number of my friends attended a showing and failed to laugh at parts not shown in the trailer. Were they disappointed, yes! But we need to take a step back and look at the success that communications experts were able to achieve despite having a poor product to work with.   Taking the most appealing aspects of the movie and combining them into two minutes gave the movie an appearance as a potential blockbuster.  A trailer can portray a movie in a way that is totally different than it actually is.

Here is a perfect example:

Willy Wonka

For those who have seen the actual movie this trailer leads us far away from the heartfelt movie that is "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory".  This trailer was created out of jest, but it shows how far from reality a trailer can be from the feature it is promoting.

As you prepare for the next trip to the theater take a few seconds to checkout a review online or see how the movie is doing on Rotten Tomatoes.  These open forms of critique will help prevent further deceptions that will lead you into a bad movie experience.

Keeping some chains on "Django Unchained"

When a Quentin Tarantino movie is released, you are guaranteed a few things: an all-star cast, excessive violence, an oddly-placed pop song, and to go along with these things is a wave of media coverage.  While this is a good recipe for box office attendance, it also can lead to an onslaught of controversy. Tarantino and his staff are used to this, so they are always prepared to counter any negative media that will strongly detract from the box office earnings.  This week, we will look at the most recent addition to the Tarantino movie family, "Django Unchained", and analyze how prior preparation and good media relations kept the movie out of serious trouble.

Let me give you a disclaimer that I loved this movie and many other Tarantino movies. They are quirky, driving, groundbreaking and usually feature actors going above and beyond any previous performance they may have had. Tarantino is sometimes a tough director to watch if you don't drink the Tarantino Kool-Aid, but none-the-less he has helped push the film industry to do more.

The areas that were most criticized after the movies release were the high level of violence and use of derogatory language. Both areas are what helped make the movie distinctive, but with the release at the same time as the Shady Hook shooting, it made them an easy target for media scrutiny.  Tarantino's professionals had a very good handle on the situation by making sure to have the actors and staff prepared for the onslaught. Tarantino himself showed a great deal of poise throughout the media barrage and spoke frankly about the film.  This approach smoothed many ruffled feathers that surrounded the controversy.  Instead of letting the discussion go on without them involved, they stepped up and directed the conversation in a way that protected the film.

Another hot topic was the potential harm that was caused to the horses used in the film.  This scrutiny took place prior to the release after several animal rights groups released statements about horses being hurt during film production.  Thankfully, the film crew saw this potential problem and had it addressed by having certified and reputable horse care authorities on location. This helped disprove the wrongful allegations. In addition, the film crew put in a blatant disclaimer in the film to make it clear that no animals were harmed during the production.

While there was still some chatter about how negative the film was overall, the PR team for the movie did a stand up job. Due to their diligent preparation and desire to be an active member in the controversial discussions they were able to keep the film in good standing with the public.  I hope that Tarantino is back in the studio soon to give us another great experience at the theater!

Get a Scare Degree from MU

Today we are going to explore the efforts that Disney Pixar has been using to promote their upcoming film "Monsters University". This prequel to the first installment in this franchise "Monsters Inc." has been highly anticipated due to the monstrous success of the first movie. Even though the promotional items and advertising has been minimal in these past few months in main stream media Disney has been working on many non-traditional items that have been causing a bit of a stir.

First let's travel to a place that is familiar to many of my fellow classmates and friends, the all mighty university website. Check out how Disney has put a fun spin on the classic university website to promote this upcoming film.   For a group of people that were raised when the first movie was released the appeal of this site makes us laugh as we venture around the site remembering how much fun we had watching the first installment.  This interactive site gives people the freedom to spend their time as they chose.  I found myself roaming in the campus life section for quiet a while because of my background in Greek Life here at Ohio State. Disney has created a totally immersive environment that has branched out into every facet of what a university website would need to attract potential students.

To build on this immersive content they also put together videos to accompany the website that do not even mention the film itself.  

Check them out!

Imagine You at MU

A Message from the Dean

I think that this website gives a fresh new look to what an advertisement can be in the film industry.  Instead of just showing a few clips from the film on a website that also may have merchandise section, Disney created a world of its own for people to engage with.  By giving people a variety of ways to connect with their upcoming film we will see many people using social media to bring friends and followers to the website. This gives Disney a chance to make this a viral piece of media once they accompany a traditional advertising campaign. As the film industry moves forward I think we will continue to see an attempt to build this community-like setting around movies because of the power it holds.

The allure of the theater!

Welcome friends!

My name is Cambell Parrish and this is my new blog that will be focusing on the film industry and how it uses marketing, advertising, and public relations to better serve its customers.  I will have different examples from time to time that show both the good and the bad of film communications and I hope that you will join in on the discussion.

Before we get started with content that pertains to film communications let me take a moment to better introduce myself.

Things of note:

- Born and raised on a pig farm in the Northwest corner of Ohio and have always been enchanted with movies and the way they are created.  I love going to the theater, especially to see the new previews and posters! 
- I am currently studying Strategic Communication at The Ohio State University and have an interest in the advertising and marketing side of the major.
- You may see me at Ohio State Athletic events on occasion. The reason for this is I am interning with Ohio State Fan Experience and Promotions and also working for the Athletic Ticket Office. Both jobs have given me great experience in the fields of customer service and marketing.
-Food is another love of mine.  I love exploring the Columbus area to find new places and great eats on weekends with friends and family.

In closing, I have named my top five movies that I could watch again and again. They all have their different reasons for being this way, but most have a soft spot in my heart for the connections I made with them the first time I saw them.

Top five movies:
- "The Dark Knight"
- "Jiro Dreams of Sushi"
- "Monsters Inc."
- "Django Unchained"
- "Grumpier Old Men"

Please, feel free to share your top five and be sure to stop back in to join the discussion!