AOL RED Announces Exclusive "Direct-to-download" Horror Film Release
Today AOL announced that they will release the horror film 'Incubus' as a "direct-to-download" exclusive on AOL RED, a teen-centric entertainment site.
Starring Tara Reid, the feature-length film follows a group of six teens attempting to escape from a government paranormal research lab. AOL plans to sell downloads for 7.99 or five day rentals for $3.49. Purchasers can begin watching the stream as it downloads. The film will be available for download beginning on October 31st, and AOL will have a 30 day exclusive window before the DVD hits stores. AOL plans to promote the release with a user-generated content contest where fans can submit homemade horror shorts. No specifics on prizing was mentioned.
At first glance, this looks like a creative way to build buzz for both AOL RED (who heard of it before today, anyway?) and the DVD's release. However, given the fact that the target audience spends more time online than watching television, this little promotion may have stumbled on a new window. If they're successful, that is…
Lionsgate and Warcon Records promo ‘Saw III’ with Live Musical Event
 Lionsgate and Warcon Records teaming up next month to put on a ‘Saw III’-themed live music show in support of the upcoming feature film and soundtrack.
“A Musical Evening Inspired by the Soundtrack of SAW III” will kick off at New York’s Webster Hall on October 19th. The evening will feature appearances by bands from the film’s soundtrack, with headlining acts to include Helmet, The Smashup and Hydrovibe. Shawnee Smith, who stars as “Amanda” in all three ‘Saw” movies, will emcee the show, and other cast members will be on hand for appearances as well.
A special ‘Saw’ museum will also be set up on the premises, which will include actual film props, torture devices, and the creepy ‘Billie’ puppet. There’s also an opportunity to join a “Circle of Blood” fan club, which will entitle members to gain early access to the venue for a meet and greet with cast members and the bands and a big bag of ‘Saw’ swag.
The informational site for the event is here. Advance tickets are also available through Ticketweb.
The ‘Saw III’ soundtrack will drop on October 24th, and the film hits theaters on October 27th. The ‘Saw’ franchise has grossed Lionsgate over $247 million to date in worldwide box office and has sold-through over 1.8 million DVDs, according to Nielsen Videoscan.
New Line Decides Against Critics' Screenings for 'Snakes on a Plane'
According to Variety, New Line has decided to forgo any pre-release screenings of their upcoming horror film 'Snakes on A Plane.'
In a move calculated to reduce the chances of any poor critical reviews or buzz-killing word of mouth, the earliest the public and critics alike will be able to see the film is Thursday night on August 17th. No press screenings or sneaks will be available.
Holding back press screenings for genre and action fare has become a common practice lately, mostly because the films' core audience is typically made up of genre fans who don’t read newspaper reviews. However, for the rest of the public, a lack of early reviews is starting to be interpreted as "this film sucks." New Line is spinning this move as “a chance for fans to see the film first.” However, if you look at past films that have withheld press screenings, it doesn’t bode well for the quality of 'Snakes.'
Recent films that have withheld press screenings include: 'Aeon Flux,' 'Cursed,' 'Phat Girlz,' 'Scary Movie 4,' 'See no Evil', 'The Benchwarmers,' 'The Fog,' 'The Hills Have Eyes,' 'Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Family Reunion,' 'Ultraviolet,' 'Underworld: Evolution', and 'When a Stranger Calls.'
If we've missed any, please add them in the comments.
Lionsgate Announces Nationwide Public Word of Mouth Screening Event for 'The Descent'
 Lionsgate has teamed up with in-theater ad & promo outfit National CineMedia and Horror rag Fangoria Magazine to launch a one-night-only advance screening event for the upcoming horror thriller 'The Descent.' The special screening will take place next week on July 26th at 8:00 p.m. - nine days ahead of the film's August 4th wide release. The event will be held at 47 participating Regal, United Artists, Edwards, and Cinemark around the country in key markets including New York, Los Angeles, Denver, Miami and Atlanta, among others (a full list of markets is available here). A regular admission charge will be in effect, and tickets can be purchased either online or at the box office the day of the screening.
The producers of the film have created exclusive behind-the-scenes content created especially for the event, and Fangoria has created a microsite to promote the screenings as well. Lionsgate has also linked to the advance ticket sales site from the film’s homepage.
Based on the numerous positive early reviews from fan boy and genre sites such as AICN, Joblo.com and bloodydisgusting.com, the potential for good word of mouth arising from this effort are high, especially since the structure of the event is designed to cater to the "mavens" of the horror genre – Fangoria readers eager to see both the previously-unseen U.S. cut as well as the exclusive extras. Collateral for the film has also been exceptional, with one of the most compelling one-sheets, trailer and web sites of 2006.
This isn't National CineMedia's first foray into movie marketing promotions – Last year, they conducted advance screenings to promote MGM’s 'North Country', as well as a one day re-release of New Line's 'The Wedding Crashers' earlier this year in support of the DVD release. Both screenings also had "special features," including a live satellite Q&A for 'North Country' and exclusive "uncorked" extras for 'Wedding Crashers.'
Twentieth Century Fox Promotes 'Night Watch' DVD Release with Virtual Scavenger Hunt
Twentieth Century Fox has partnered with Buzztone, a New York-based youth marketing agency, to conduct an online promotional scavenger hunt for the home video release of 'Night Watch.'
According to a joint press release, fans choose between "the forces of darkness or light" and then are tasked to find lost objects scattered across the web. Clues have been hidden on a wide slate of niche horror websites, including MonstersandCritics.com, HorrorFind.com, Bloody-Disgusting.com, and FemmeFatales.com, among others. In addition to a $2500 dollar grand prize for the top scavenger, Fox is also offering DVD players and horror DVDs as additional prizes.
A disappointment for Fox during its theatrical run, the film earned a meager $1.5 million during its U.S. release. However, the film is among the most successful releases of all time in its native Russia, earning more than $30 million.
The 'Night Watch' DVD hit stores on June 20th, but fans have until July 20th to participate in the promotion. You can visit the promotional site at buzztone.com/nightwatch.
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Fox Searchlight Sends Severed Ears to Promote 'The Hills Have Eyes'
Marketing horror films has always required a mix of creativity, brashness, and the occasional gross-out. Fox Searchlight followed the latter to a tee this week when they sent out fake severed ears in a clever styrofoam clam-shell to promote the upcoming release of 'The Hills Have Eyes'.. You can check it out here, if you dare.
Before you congratulate the marketing team at Fox Searchlight for their originality, however, you should know that the guys at Lionsgate sent severed hands out to journalists when they promoted 'Saw' a year and a half ago.
Three times a marketing trend makes, and we're waiting to see what the Weinsteins do with the next Dimension release...
Found via the incomparable Adrants
Pathe Promos New Horror Film with PlayStation Portable Downloads
According to Netimperative, French film company Pathe is promoting their latest horror flick 'The Descent' by creating special trailers for use on the PlayStation Portable:
Anna Butler, marketing director at Pathe, said: We wanted to try something new with out trailer downloads, we already commit a substantial amount of work to promoting each film digitally and this seemed like a natural progression.
"PSPs are an exciting development and we wanted to start using this new medium.
Interactive agency Greenroom Digital helped make the promotion happen, and Pathe will team up with them again in the near future to promote upcoming releases 'The Crash' and 'The Business.'
You can download the trailer here if you happen to have a PSP and want to see it.
[ Via Netimperative]
Reaction Negative to Paris Hilton's 'House of Wax' Promo Podcast
If the comments surrounding Paris Hilton's promotional podcasts for 'House of Wax' are any indicator, Warner Brothers' experiment with the format has been poorly received by members of the podcasting community.
According to the message boards on Podcast Alley, a leading source for podcasting shows and info, people are finding the rambling musings of Paris as she wanders around as "boring celeb-spam." Here's an example from one post written yesterday:
I started listening to podcasts in January, and I gotta say that, after hearing the first Paris Hilton "podcast", I am really impressed with how fast the whole thing appears to be going right down the tubes...The Paris Hilton "podcast" is exactly the kind of drivel that drove people to take broadcast content into their own hands in the first place. *This* is what the podcasting community should boycott, and if it is on Podcast Alley only because of the cash involved, P.A. is in real trouble..."
Backlash from insiders is one thing, but are these podcasts going to get anyone interested in the film? After having listened to the show, my verdict is a resounding no. The production values are embarrassing, Paris' unfettered ennui is tiresome, and the grating theme had me reaching for the mute button on my keyboard.
So what have we learned from this experiment?
1. Poor production values -- If you're going to do a commercial podcast, do it right. Hire professionals to record, edit and mix the audio.
2. Boring content -- They should have structured the content to complement the film and build interest in it. We're not talking hiring a crack team of writers or anything -- but even a little bit of structure would have been nice.
3. Wrong audience for the film's demographics -- podcasting is still in it's infancy, and is largely a tech-savvy audience catering to hip, literate men and women in their mid to late twenties. Paris Hilton, awash in disinterest and perpetually disengaged, is about the worst person you could pick to reach out to these people.
So what kind of film would have benefited from a podcast? I can think of two:
Seems like big-budget sci-fi fans are the perfect demo to consume podcasts -- for example, imagine how popular one for the upcoming 'War of the Worlds' film could be, especially if it was a 2005 version of the famed Orson Welles broadcast...
Or maybe a studio could use a podcast to cheaply add web value to a preexisting franchise -- think "Shrek" or "Napoleon Dynamite". Perhaps you could have Napoleon run a fictional Idaho radio station, playing his "flippin' sweet" tunes...
These are just off-the-cuff examples, but I can see something in line with these ideas having a greater impact and the potential for a "viral effect."
You can catch the first two 'House of Wax' podcasts here.
[Via Always On]
Amityville Horror remake backed with online ad push
In their latest issue, Brand Republic covers the online movie marketing push for the Amityville Horror remake. Sam Ball of London-based Lean Mean Fighting Machine, the agency behind the ad, described their approach:
It was important that the flies looked and behaved realistically to create an impression of a plague of disgusting flies infesting your computer. By giving each fly its own simple artificial intelligence the illusion was made possible despite the tight file size restrictions.
Horror marketing campaigns are becoming quite the playground! We would really like to see this ad -- if anyone has a link, please forward it to us.
Amityville Horror remake backed with fly-ridden online ad push - Brand Republic
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