So, if you're the Disney Co., and you're ... ah .... a little disheartened about ticket sales to your latest animated feature, what do you do? Here's an idea:
[N]eed a reason to go see Bolt? How about this: starting Friday, 3D Bolt showings will be preceded by a 3D animated short called Tokyo Mater, based on Pixar's 2006 hit Cars. This may not sound like much if you were already hesitant about watching a talking dog movie, but for some, this is very intriguing; it's the latest step towards revitalizing my favorite mutation of cinema: the animated short.
Directed by Pixar founder and Chief Creative Officer of Disney animation John Lasseter, Tokyo Mater is the fourth in a series of Cars shorts (the previous three premiered on Toon Disney late October) ...
We can dust off an overused term from the 1990s and call this Synergy!
Me, I'll call it smart, cross-studio utilization. And a fine way to add a little heft to weekend grosses as we move closer to the all-important holiday season.
Posts
10 comments:
Just as an FYI, this was planned a long time ago (like, back in March)
The original plan was to have Glago's Guest be released in front of Bolt, and then for the holidays re-release prints with the Cars short. But for some reason, they dropped GG, but we still get the Cars short.
Whatevs. Just as long as people go see Bolt
Bolt was nominated for two Golden Globes today.
Yes, and the short was planned months ago. You don't exactly whip-up a 3D short with tons of new characters and environments in a week or two and get it on the big screen.
I really wonder if adding a (new) short to the beginning of a movie brings in new audience.
I'm sure there are a few that go. But enough to really make any noticeable change? Unlikely.
BOLT and animated movies in general need to be able to stand up on their own.
There should be no need to bribe audiences to go see it by offering a short in front of the film.
I had to think about this one for a while, but in the end, in my opinion, this could have a potentially great effect on the industry...
If ticket sales increase after the Cars short is attached to Bolt, then hopefully studios will start doing more shorts (theatrical or otherwise) which means more jobs for more people in animation.
>>Yes, and the short was planned months ago<<
No no, I mean the plan to include the short as a re-release with Bolt for the Holiday season was planned from the beginning.
Im trying to point out that Disney isnt doing this to prop Bolt up (implying its a bad film)
The goal is two-fold. First is to reward audience members who want to see it a second time with a little treat. The second is to force an additional marketing campaign after the release of the movie. Disney was disappointed with the Christmas holdover of Enchanted and wanted to try to do something to gain the public's attention again.
definitely need to get more people to go see Bolt as soon as possible. I think this is a good idea.
I'll be on my way to see Bolt again soon. I'm going for the movie and for Tokyo Mater. I remember paying for Raising Helen (I didn't stay for the movie) just to see Lorenzo. It was worth every matinee penny. I also drove 300 miles to see Destino attached to Triplets of Belleville. Can't say as I enjoyed/understood/got the feature, but the short was an amazing post humous experiment between two greats which more than justifyied a ridiculous drive. The things we do for cartoons. I hope Bolt does get a boxoffice jolt; he certainly deserves it.
It's a shame Glago's Guest wasn't in front of Bolt as, apparently, was originally planned. I saw it a few weeks ago at Ron Diamond's Show of Shows screening, and it was a very interesting short.
Post a Comment