Chapter 31: Marketing Tactics

People who typically didn't pay much attention to movies began to take notice of this topic, and many were fans of William White's book. Forrest Gump had such a strong appeal that William White's script should also be good. There was no reason it couldn't make it to theaters; something must be going on behind the scenes. Now that there was something shady happening, conspiracy theories started to surface. It was evident that someone was targeting William White. Everyone agreed that Hollywood was a cesspool of scoundrels and crooks, resorting to coercion and deception. Who could be more shameless than them? Can you believe it? This director is also a bestselling author. That's pretty impressive, right? Who can tell me what sort of genius this guy is? Because of the good word-of-mouth from the book, more and more people stood up to speak out, and the book sales skyrocketed. The publisher, of course, had no sense of shame and began to exploit the drama, determined to blow the situation out of proportion. ... This year's box office numbers were abysmal. The big shots in Hollywood were struggling more than ever, and now things seemed to have worsened; box office revenues had nearly plummeted. The theater owners were also in a bind. With only a handful of people in the cinemas, they barely made any money. Ticket sales didn't even cover their electricity bills. For them, it was a disaster, but it was good news for William White. He could now easily secure support from theater chains; in less than a week, he had gathered five hundred cinemas. William White's unexpected entry disrupted Hollywood's existing distribution system, opening up opportunities for smaller companies; he was not the only one that had been exploited by Hollywood. ... At the same time, Police Academy started ramping up promotions. When NBC aired the first trailer, the industry was in an uproar. Promotion back in those days typically involved hiring a few media outlets to write soft articles, putting up some posters around theaters, and maybe publishing the premiere date in newspapers. That was basically it. Whoever had ever seen a TV commercial knew it was extremely expensive; one wrong move could lead to losing a small fortune. It was truly a high-stakes game. Spending millions on advertisements sounded absolutely insane. There were plenty of movies that didn't even earn ten million at the box office, so this was a gamble of sorts. After watching the trailer, the audience's reaction was quite positive; it seemed like a light-hearted and entertaining film. As long as the timing was right, they wouldn't mind catching it; it looked downright funny. The ad claimed, if you didn't laugh, they'd refund your ticket. This whole marketing strategy left Hollywood insiders dumbfounded. They felt like fools, completely out of their league. ... Since the market response was promising, USC obviously wanted to support its own students. About thirty percent of the crew comprised USC students, so if they didn't show support, it would be ridiculous. What? This was made by a bunch of kids? These kids had endured countless hardships to make this film, and hoped society would back them. More understanding and tolerance was needed, the old professor from the film school proclaimed that this was the funniest comedy in years. He insisted that if anyone was dissatisfied, they could come to him to complain. Hollywood seemed to realize they were dealing with a bunch of kids. Regardless of how slick William White was, he was still just under 19, and provoking a group of kids could lead to predictable outcomes. Most importantly, these kids weren't short on cash, and their social networks were quite complex. If possible, it was better not to provoke them. "Boss, do you have any funding problems? Do you want us, the brotherhood, to chip in a bit?" "No need. I received my first advance payment; they even prepaid part of it, so I'm within budget." "Got it. If you find yourself in a pinch, just say the word. We've got your back." "Let's ramp up internal promotions on campus, spread the word to other schools, use acquaintances and fellow students to quickly increase influence. California and Texas are good to go, but we still need more reach in other states; our classmates come from everywhere, right?" "I got it, Boss. I'll get right on it." ... After various discussions and compromises, no one mentioned race or religion anymore. Everyone decided to play by the rules; if they went too far, many lives could be at stake. William White was simply seeking profit; this time, he had been pushed too far. You could say he wasn't exactly known for his patience, and it was a good thing he didn't come in guns blazing. A very wild yet cunning rascal was indeed a nightmare for many. It was fortuitous he wasn't bothering you, and you still dared to threaten him? Were you hoping for an early grave? Wall Street investment firms faced similar challenges. Did you see them resorting to threats? What does it mean to be a billionaire? It means you can use money to solve all troubles. These folks were planning to outright buy up theater chains, and here you are worrying about trivial matters. That was downright comical! ... Before long, a second advertising clip appeared, catching quite a bit of attention. It had only been three days; could there be a third ad? You show all the exciting shots; are audiences still going to watch the movie? They soon found out the answer. The film set to premiere on July 1st was now hot in pre-sales, all in response to audience demand. Hollywood had never done it this way before. Who sold pre-sale tickets for movies? What if the buzz turned out to be terrible? I still might need to refund tickets. The cinemas didn't want the hassle of dealing with returns; they'd rather focus on other matters. Yet this time it was different; almost all five hundred theaters were virtually sold out. They provided a guaranteed minimum, and made some requests that were hard to refuse. An astonishing scene unfolded; within no time, tickets for the first weekend were quickly sold out. The theaters had to add more showings to keep up with demand. Regardless of the movie's quality, the marketing tactics were genuinely impressive. Everyone was aware that these were just emergency measures devised after suffering significant setbacks. Hollywood had been completely thrown off by this strategy; by comparison, it made them seem like a bunch of kids. These guys were a lot more professional than them. Everyone in the industry agreed this film was bound to succeed commercially. Although the trailers offered weak scientific backing, their talents clearly were not lacking, and contradicted those earlier rumors. ... In response to the clamor, Hollywood's big players chose to remain silent. They didn't dare mischaracterize anything since angering these kids might lead to trouble for their own bosses. Most of the time, the public tends to sympathize with the underdog; it's best not to challenge public limits, or you're likely to face big trouble. With the release of the final trailer, the promotional hype reached a peak. On an NBC talk show, not only were the main cast and creators present, but they also showcased some behind-the-scenes footage, filled with charm and humor. Hollywood's big shots only hoped that the box office wouldn't be a total embarrassment; otherwise, it would be quite the humiliation for them. ***** https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.