America 1987

Chapter 3 Marketing Strategies

Making the main character a Texan to attract a specific audience is a very good strategy.

In 1991, a New York Times reporter pointed out that the craze for Black products enabled newcomers with no professional background to direct films, and Black films became a "must-have" in the 90s.

However, while trying to please Black people, one should not excessively offend the white community. Realistic works that purely expose violence in the slums, like "Boys in the Block," are often not well-received by white people.

The "magical black" character, like Whoopi Goldberg in "Ghost," who possesses supernatural powers and specializes in helping white protagonists solve their problems, is often more favored by mainstream Hollywood.

After all, a story that exposes how miserable the lives of Black people are is definitely not as appealing as a heartwarming family drama about Black and white people helping each other and being very united.

"Hmm, Whoopi Goldberg is indeed a very good choice. It seems you understand marketing too."

Michael Ovitz patted the script. "But what's with the other casting? The two villains are completely unknown people I've never heard of before."

"Why are the male and female lead roles still left blank? Haven't you chosen them yet?"

"Of course not."

David snatched the script, grabbed a pen from the pen holder on the table, and started scribbling on it.

"I simply didn't fill it out; I've already decided on the candidates."

"Oh, who's the male lead?"

Michael Ovitz leaned over curiously to take a look.

In 1987, mainstream Hollywood genre films were mostly male-centric, and these genres accounted for the majority of the box office. Female characters often played functional supporting roles (wives, girlfriends, victims) rather than being the core of the plot.

Therefore, when predicting the prospects of a film, industry insiders first consider the personal charm and global recognition of the male stars.

Even in romantic comedies, a genre where women are more likely to succeed, a stable "women's box office guarantee" mechanism had not yet been established in 1987.

This imbalance was not gradually alleviated until the mid-to-late 1990s due to cases of women like Julia Roberts and Sandra Bullock carrying the box office.

Therefore, Michael Ovitz's first question was about the choice of the male lead.

However, he was stunned when he saw the name on it, and looked up at his nephew in disbelief.

"So, what do you think of this casting?"

"That's an idea. If you're going to choose the male lead like this, then the female lead must be a newcomer actress, right?"

Michael Ovitz lit another cigarette, hoping to calm himself down.

"Then you don't need to worry about it. So, how about it? Is the gimmick of writing, directing, and acting yourself eye-catching enough?"

David said with considerable confidence.

"Back in the day, when Stallone was making 'Rocky,' he was only writing and starring in it. He was hailed by the media as an all-around creator for taking on two roles; well, I'm taking on three..."

"Do you think this is the reason for Rocky's huge success?"

David gave a knowing smile, "I knew you'd say that." "Of course, it's not just because of that."

"Sylvester Stallone was able to make a comeback with this film thanks to his 'do-or-die' personal narrative."

"Completely linking one's real-life experiences with movie characters—this kind of marketing strategy is something most people can't learn."

Before filming Rocky, Sylvester Stallone was dirt poor, living in a run-down apartment and supporting his family by acting in softcore pornographic films.

At that time, his wife was pregnant, but they only had $106 left in the bank. He visited more than 500 film companies with his completed script and was rejected 1850 times.

Later, a production company offered $36 to buy the rights to the script, on the condition that popular stars such as James Caan or Burt Reynolds star in it. Stallone insisted on starring himself, even though he was willing to take less money.

Because the distributor, Lianmei Company, initially lacked confidence and provided extremely limited promotional resources, it gradually became popular through word-of-mouth.

Then the film distributors used this true story of a rags-to-riches story to compare and promote it with Rocky Balboa's story in the film, which instantly became a concrete representation of the "American Dream," arousing the curiosity of more viewers and drawing them to the cinema.

In addition, the film's promotion emphasized that Stallone starred for only $2.5 and that the producers even mortgaged their houses to raise funds, creating a dramatic tension of "going all in."

All of these factors combined to create a classic marketing case in film history, but it is a typical strategy that is hard to come by and not widely applicable.

"Then why bother with writing, directing, and starring in this yourself?"

Michael Ovitz frowned in confusion and took the cigar out of his mouth.

"You know perfectly well that Hollywood now only favors high-concept films. Without stars, special effects, and a simple, straightforward core selling point, the big studios won't value your work, and Paramount is no exception."

"Uncle, do you know about the Sundance Film Festival?"

David's throat was getting dry from talking, so he poured himself a glass of water.

"I know, it's a film festival that was founded two years ago. It's only been held twice, this is its third year."

Michael was increasingly confused about his nephew's thinking. "You can't expect this makeshift crew to promote your movie, can you?"

"Maybe after my film, it will become the most influential independent film festival in the United States."

David took a sip of water and began talking to himself.

The Sundance Film Festival originated from the American Film Festival, founded in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1978, which originally focused on film retrospectives and seminars.

In 1984, due to continuous losses, it was taken over by Sundance College, led by Robert Redford.

The third edition was held in 1987, and it still used the name "Sundance Independent Film Festival". It was not until 1989, with the huge success of Steven Soderbergh's "Sex, Lies and Videotape", that it truly gained fame, dropped the word "independent", and changed its name to "Sundance Film Festival".

Currently, Sundance's participation is still quite limited, its industry status remains marginal, and it has almost no interaction with major Hollywood studios. Award-winning films also find it difficult to receive the same level of attention and screenings from mainstream cinemas as the three major European film studios.

but……

"And Robert Redford is, after all, a veteran filmmaker and a seasoned Oscar winner," David said, seemingly analyzing for Michael, but also for himself.

"As long as I can guarantee that the film quality is indeed fine, he will definitely endorse me at this early stage of Sundance."

"Mainstream cinemas do not value independent films that win awards at these newly established film festivals, but who says my film 'Human Feelings and Ghosts' is an independent film? I'm just using the film festival platform to build up some word-of-mouth first..."

Michael Ovitz listened carefully to David's analysis for a while, then nodded.

"Alright, David, since you're so confident in your film, I won't say anything more. Just focus on making it, and I'll do my best to help you with the marketing and distribution."

David Ovitz left his uncle's office and walked out of CAA Brokerage's headquarters.

He glanced back at the massive building, his eyes filled with longing.

David Ovitz, that's his name in this world.

Yes, he is a time traveler. He was originally just an ordinary second-tier director in the Eastern Continent. For some unknown reason, he woke up here one day.

Fortunately, I didn't end up in the body of a homeless person, otherwise I don't know if I could have survived the winter. Although the American Kill Line is somewhat demonized on the Internet, the problems it reveals do exist.

His uncle was not Don Quixote, but Michael Ovitz, the founder of CAA.

Founded in 1975, CAA is only 12 years old, but its influence in the Hollywood talent agency field has surpassed that of WMA, a long-established agency founded in 1898, making it the top agency in the field.