A highlight at Variety’s Massive Entertainment Marketing Summit {link no longer active} was the panel called “The Masters: The Studio Heads of Marketing.” It was a rare opportunity to have the top marketers at big movie studios together on one stage. The panelists were Megan Colligan, President WW Distribution and Marketing, Paramount Pictures; Michelle Hooper, EVP, Marketing, Fox Searchlight; Ricky Strauss, President, Marketing, The Walt Disney Studios; Marc Weinstock, President Domestic Theatrical Marketing, 20th Century Fox; Josh Goldstine, President Worldwide Marketing, Universal Pictures and Angela Courtin, Chief Marketing Officer, Relativity.
Here are some of the takeaways we got on topics like influencers, tech and more:
About Influencers:
Angela Courtin, Chief Marketing Officer, Relativity:
“There are too many choices with platforms and partners. You can’t do a campaign without social today, but you don’t live or die by social either. But we are seeing influencer marketing growing in importance in the media mix.”
On Turning Around Bad Buzz
Megan Colligan, President WW Distribution and Marketing, Paramount Pictures:
“Research comes in handy here because it can give you an actual read of how the movie will perform rather than just listening to social media buzz (and freaking out).”
Josh Goldstine, President Worldwide Marketing, Universal Pictures:
“People go to movies for ideas, so the title should capture an idea. For example the title ‘Unfriended’ said so much it really changed the fate of that movie.”
A Little About Tech
Megan Colligan, President WW Distribution and Marketing, Paramount Pictures:
“If the trailer takes more than 3 seconds to load, the audience is out. So it’s as important to have a conversation with your tech developers as it is to have a good trailer these days.”
On Making A Movie An Event
Ricky Strauss, President, Marketing, The Walt Disney Studios:
“What we can collectively hold hands on is that movies are the most popular form of ticketed entertainment, but what we need to ensure we have to make sure it’s a big event, something that you need to experience on the big screen and can’t replicate on any smaller screens at home.”
Megan Colligan, President WW Distribution and Marketing, Paramount Pictures:
“The great thing with young people is that they come in groups, so you really just have to get to one of them. So it has to be an event for somebody and have something that connects socially, but if you’re not that important to any particular demographic you’re in trouble.”
On The Growing Importance of Media Buying & Future of Advertising
Marc Weinstock, President Domestic Theatrical Marketing, 20th Century Fox:
“To be honest, the meetings about media buying a few years ago used the be the shortest, because it was fairly straight-forward. Now they’re the longest and most interesting meetings. How do you reach this or that particular demographic in today’s media landscape ”
Ricky Strauss, President, Marketing, The Walt Disney Studios:
“It’s never been a better time to be a marketer than now, because it’s all changing and it’s an opportunity to reinvent our craft. In 10 years from now marketing as we know it will be unrecognizable.”
