Sophi-Louise Hill is the exhibition marketing manager at Universal Pictures UK. In movie industry terms, an exhibition is a process of showing a movie to the audience. In other words, Hill is making sure people actually go to a theater to see the latest Universal offering.
«My work is related to all things movie theaters», she explains, «while my colleagues deal with streaming, TV, etc. A lot of the key marketing decisions come from our LA office: trailers, posters and other important promotional tools. But then they have to speak with each market to see if their decisions are appropriate for all territories. And then I have to deal with any regional issues. For example, one of our recent artworks had a knife on it and I had to figure out what to do with a movie theater chain here, in the UK, that had several cases of knife crimes recently and was reluctant about showing a weapon on a poster. We ended up tweaking the image a little, luckily nothing drastic had to be done.»
Even though the skeptics were predicting the collapse of the movie theater industry, naming streaming and COVID-19 as its main enemies, the UK cinemas are showing a steady post-pandemic recovery. In 2023 box office sales increased by 8% compared to 2022. Culturally speaking, the movies are also gaining back the influence and the impact that they almost lost thanks to the abundance of hit TV shows. 2023’s hit list of most-talked-about movies includes Barbie, Oppenheimer, Saltburn and Poor Things. People still want to see movies on big screens. But do they crave more from that experience? And can the industry as a whole both inspire and get inspired by other worlds, whether it’s music, sports or tech? Let’s find out with the help of our expert.
The marketing of each movie experience is territory-sensitive.
What Movies Bring People
First thing we want to know is if there’s any way to really understand what kind of movies the audience actually wants. With several Marvel productions flopping recently, does it mean the demand is finally shifting from superhero movies to something different?
Hill comments:
«One thing that comes up in the research all the time is that people have got fatigue from the franchise movies and want original stories (which obviously is a big thing for us as we work on things like 'Fast' movies). But it’s funny because another part of the research shows that when an original story comes out, the audience doesn't trust that it’s going to be good and don’t watch it. It’s kinda hilarious. Plus there’s also this ‘I have to see this’ mentality among males when it comes to things like the 'Fast' franchise. When there’s a buzz on social media, people go see it. But it is harder and harder to predict.»
Maybe projects that are semi-familiar are the saving grace? Movies based on well-known brands (Barbie), biopics (Oppenheimer) or video games (Five Nights at Freddy’s)?
«Yes,» Hill agrees, «I think the audience wants some familiarity whether that’s a toy or a famous story that’s never been turned into a film. Or even a song. That’s why music biopics usually go so well. Music industry has been the biggest influence for the movie industry.»
Cinema experts are great at nailing just the right amount of new.
The audience prefers a good mix of familiar content with a carefully calculated drop of novelty - new things are scary and hard to relate to, whereas repeatable stories are simply boring.
She goes on to remind us how last October Universal had to push the release date of The Exorcist: Believer in order not to clash (and lose money) with the theatrical release of Taylor Swift’s concert film Eras.
Hill points out that movie versions of the concerts can become even more popular as the actual live music industry is becoming less and less democratic. If you haven’t heard, getting a Taylor Swift is anything but swift: tickets cost a fortune and sell out in nanoseconds. Yet there’s the same hunger for music-centered experiences. So we will see more and more artists following Swift and Beyonce’s examples and adapting their live shows for movie screens.
It’s also a matter of comfort: watching a movie is by default an easier and more comfortable experience than being at an actual concert. Of course the Eras experience is irrelevant here, as I personally had to deal with a swarm of demonic 10-year-olds who almost disrupted the screening by activating the IMAX alarm system with their dancing. It was still slightly cheaper than trying to get to Brazil to see Taylor. Same goes to other areas, as UK cinemas are already showing National Opera performances, boxing and football matches.
The music industry can also take one big thing from the cinema world. Namely the big screen itself. It’s almost shocking that to this day there is no set protocol on the size of the screens for various stadiums and music festivals, which means you can never really predict whether you will see anything or not. Making sure each gig has a big screen will surely elevate the experience for every music fan.
Cinemas are not just for movies anymore: people come to see concerts, theater screenings, sports matches, and even play video games. This way cinema theaters diversify their offerings in an oversaturated market of movies.
Adapting the same technology to the new use cases can help boost revenue when the growth stagnates.
Creating an Experience
Given all the AI buzz and the general democratization of the entertainment industry (TikTokers becoming proper celebrities, etc), it would be safe to assume that the movie industry would adopt a more playful approach for its experiences.