Paranormal Activity Case Study

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Paranormal Activity was filmed in 2007, yet it was not widely released until 2009 when Paramount Pictures purchased the rights. However, fans of the film are the reason this film became an overnight hit. Paramount began showing the films in college towns to generate publicity among college-aged viewers. Once the company realized how successful that tactic was, they launched a campaign on the website, Eventful. Movie-goers would demand the movie in their city, and if the film got more than one million demands, Paramount would widely release the film. It took less than a week for this to happen and the film began rolling out into all major markets. By doing this, Paramount eliminated the risk that the movie would not open well, with over one million people already wanting to see it. Furthermore, it provided fans with a stake in the film, as Eventful’s CEO Jordan Glazier explains in Advertising Age: “The lesson there is engaging your audience as part of the process before you even roll [your product] out gives them a sense of ownership.” Paramount had guaranteed themselves success by involving fans in getting the movie distributed, and the film would go on to be the most profitable Paramount Picture …show more content…

Astro Boy’s failure is easier to understand than Saw IV. Released during October, a prime time for horror movies, the film failed to draw in audience members who were already aware of the franchise. With those who grew up loving the show now in their mid-30s, it is difficult to attract that demographic and fails to bring in viewers who are not just looking for nostalgia. A review by a fan of the series cited the “western skew” as one of the reasons the film failed, as it took a Japanese cartoon and infiltrated it with American ideals. The film ultimately bombed in Japan because of this, yet the fan blames the unnecessary reboot in the United States as the overall reason for its

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