G322casestudy skyfall

Film IndustryCase Study

Case Study – Skyfall (2012)• G322 Key Media Concepts (TV Drama)• Section B: Institutions and Audiences1. AUDIENCE – UK/US film aimed at a global audience – censorship in

China.2. PRODUCTION – Big Budget ($200million +) – Problems with production

- produced by Eon Films (Independent UK/US film company that finances all the Bond Films) & MGM.

3. DISTRIBUTION – MGM & Columbia Pictures (both owned by Sony)4. MARKETING – Product placement, PR Stunts, Synergy.5. EXHIBITION – IMAX release – saturation 6. DIGITAL – First use of HD-DV on a Bond film – easy CGI -

Case Study – Skyfall• PRODUCTION• Production of Skyfall was suspended throughout 2010 because of

MGM's financial troubles. • With big budgets comes big risks – can you think of a film that’s

underachieved recently?• Pre-production resumed following MGM's exit from bankruptcy on 21

December 2010.• MGM and Columbia Pictures announced that the UK release date would

be 26 October 2012, two weeks ahead of the US release date, scheduled for 9 November 2012.

• The film's budget was estimated to be $200 million.• Skyfall was part of year-long celebrations of the 50th anniversary of Dr.

No and the Bond film series.

Case Study – Skyfall (2012)• PRODUCTION• Filming was scheduled to take up 133 days (it

took 128).• Filming began on 7 November 2011 in and

around London, including the National Gallery, Smithfield, Vauxhall Bridge and foreign locations including Istanbul in Turkey, Japan and China. Why is China important?

The latest James Bond film, Skyfall, has finally opened in China after a two-month delay, with some key scenes removed by Chinese censors. A scene in which Bond kills a security guard in Shanghai has been cut, as have references to prostitution in Macau. Subtitles have also been changed to hide references to torture by the Chinese security forces.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-21106821

Overall, the European market was subdued in 2012 compared with other major international cinema markets, with reports of box office gains of 5.9% in the USA and 33% in China (making China the world #2 territory after the USA)…

Case Study – Skyfall in China

Case Study – Skyfall (2012)• PRODUCTION• Compared to Quantum of Solace (which

proved the most widely travelled Bond film to date; the crew charted six countries in just under five months) Skyfall with three quarters of the budget only went to 3 locations round the world.

• Why the cutbacks?

Release Schedule for Skyfall 2011/12

2011 2012

2011 2012

Oct 23rd Skyfall Premiere in Royal Albert Hall

Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep OctOct

May 21st

1st Skyfall trailer released

Nov 3rd

Film name, cast and director announced

Oct 1st

Adele confirmed as the theme song artist

Jul 27th

Daniel Craig appears alongside the Queen for Olympic Games

opening ceremony

Nov 7th

Production begins

Sep 17th

Official UK Skyfall poster revealed

Oct 26-28th

Opening weekend of Skyfall

Jul 31st 2nd Skyfall trailer

released

Case Study - Skyfall• PRODUCTION – SHOW ME THE MONEY…• “The windfall will benefit three players in the

Bond universe: producers MGM; producers and rightsholders Barbara Broccoli, 52, and Michael G. Wilson, 70; and distributor Sony Pictures. In a complicated deal that was heavily negotiated with Sony after MGM emerged from bankruptcy in 2010, MGM and Broccoli and Wilson will jointly collect 75 per cent of the movie's profits.”

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/daniel-craig-james-bond-skyfall-390090

Case Study - Skyfall• PRODUCTION & DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY• SKYFALL the first BOND movie to be shot

digitally, as well as Sam Mendes’ first digital experience, it is the first production anywhere to make use of ALEXA Studio cameras

http://www.arrimedia.com/news/view/33/skyfall

Case Study - Skyfall• PRODUCTION• SKYFALL the first BOND movie to be shot

digitally, as well as Sam Mendes’ first digital experience, it is the first production anywhere to make use of ALEXA Studio cameras

http://www.arrimedia.com/news/view/33/skyfall

Case Study - Skyfall• EXHIBITION & DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY• The decision to make SKYFALL the first in the

franchise to be released in IMAX has already proved hugely successful - it took $3.5 million in 79 locations over 15 territories, averaging $45,000 per screen. That represents the best international opening in IMAX history.

• MARKETING• Around $75,000,000 was spent on marketing

Skyfall.

Case Study - Skyfall

• MARKETING – SYNERGY• “The new film raises the bar for onscreen product

placement, from 007's Tom Ford-tailored suits, Omega Seamaster watch and Sony Xperia phone, as well as off-screen alliances ranging from Coke Zero to perfume retailers... His new tipple of choice, Heineken, has proved an ongoing sticking point with fans, particularly after a big-budget ad that actually roped Daniel Craig into the action. However, with the Dutch beer having stumped up over £28m for the privilege of seeing Bond sip from a green bottle in an early scene – coolly covering almost a quarter of the film's estimated production budget in the process… ”

Case Study - Skyfall

http://www.jamesbondlifestyle.com/product/heineken

Case Study - Skyfall

Synergy – Ocean Royale Aftershave

VisitBritain, the official tourism and destination partner of SKYFALL, has launched its first film tourism ad. The Bond is GREAT Britain ad is out in cinemas around the world reminding people that there is no better time for them to come to Britain and explore the home of James Bond.

Synergy – VisitBritian

Publicity – Coke Zero

Synergy– Coke Zero Zero 7

Case Study - Skyfall• SOUNDTRACK - SYNERGY• The soundtrack album was released on 29 October

2012 in the UK and on 6 November 2012 in the US.• In October 2012, British singer-songwriter Adele

confirmed that she had written and recorded the film's theme song with her regular songwriter, Paul Epworth.

• She posted the cover for the Skyfall sheet music on Twitter.

http://www.007mosaic.com/

• .

Marketing - Posters

SKYFALL AUDIENCE & TWITTERWho was talking about Skyfall?• It’s interesting to note that even though the conversation was male-driven throughout the campaign (2/3 of all mentions) the female audience had it’s most prominent appearance on the release week.

6158RT

3565RT

2431RT

1621RT

1297RT

3565RT

3079RT

2107RT

1459RT

1297RT

Most retweeted Skyfall mentions:• All the most retweeted tweets since November 2011 (right) were posted in October 2012. Adele took top spot for most retweeted when she announced the release of the official theme song. • The official James Bond account (@007) also appears in the top 10.•Fake/parody accounts receive lots of attention on Twitter – such as the Queen’s fake profile and Felix Baumgartner (Red Bull space jumper). • X factor boy band Union J appear twice, with Jedward also featuring.

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SKYFALL AUDIENCE & TWITTER

1,637,385 total ‘Skyfall’ mentions on Twitter globally over the 12 months before release, with volume gradually building around each major announcement - peaking at 129,384 mentions on Friday 26th October, when the film was released.

November 3rd 2011:When the new title was announced as Skyfall, there were 3,298 mentions commenting on the ‘name’ or ‘title’ of the film . There were mixed reviews on the title, with majority positive sentiment overall.

Gender distribution: Male – 81%, Female – 19%

May 21st 2012The release of the first Skyfall trailer generated 54,752 mentions and positive buzz around the up coming film with. Most of the conversation included references to how ‘amazing’ and ‘awesome’ the trailer looks.

Gender distribution: Male – 71%, Female – 29%

October 26-28th 2012The record breaking opening weekend has generated the most buzz so far - a huge 311,485 mentions (1/5 of all activity). Most of the conversation referenced ‘excitement’ about seeing the film and about how ‘great’ the movie is. Social activity peaked on Friday 26th October with 129,384 mentions.

Gender distribution: Male – 63%, Female – 37%

October 5th 2012The official release of Adele’s Skyfall theme song generated the second highest peak within the last 12 months with 103,948 mentions about ‘Skyfall’. This shows she has a huge international following, more so even than in the UK perhaps.

Gender distribution: Male – 62%, Female – 38%