1. Hollywood Blockbusters
Cinderella is a classic folk’s tale that has been passed down for generations since the early
sixteen hundreds; the story embodies an element of unjust treatment and triumphant reward.
In 2010 due to the box office success of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, Walt Disney Pictures
announced that they be producing an adaption of the classic fairytale based on a script by Aline
Brosh McKenna. Mark Romanek had originally been asked to direct the movie, however he was
developing a plot much darker than Disney wanted and therefore left due to creative
differences; after some negotiation Kenneth Branagh took over. The movie is set to be released
on the 13th
March 2015 and expected to be one of the biggest box office success over the Easter
holidays.
The movie plot follows a live-action retelling of the classic fairytale told to children by parents
alike all across Europe. Cinderella follows young Ella and her battle to find happiness in a world
full of hatred and injustice. After the tragic death of her mother, Ella’s merchant father
remarries to Lady Tremaine and is keen to welcome both her stepmother and new sisters-
Anastasia and Drizella- into her home. However, when her father unexpectedly passes away Ella
finds herself at the mercy of a cruel new family as her life is turned upside down. Forced to be
nothing more than a servant girl and renamed Cinderella due to her cinder covered face, Ella
maintains all hope that she’ll get her happy ever after despite the cruelty inflicted upon her.
When Cinderella’s fairy godmother appears on the night of one of the grandest balls in the
kingdom, Ella dances her way into the heart of the prince.
Everything about Cinderella is target at young girls; growing up we all wanted to have a beautiful
dress for everyday of the week, go to grand balls and meet our prince charming. This is
everything that the movie provides us with; Disney is one of the biggest conglomerate
companies in the world and therefore scarily influential. They’ve created this idealistic princess
and presented it to girls over a multitude of media platforms, therefore providing the perfect
marketing exposure. Although the happily ever after aspect is targeted at young girls between
the ages of 3-10, we need to remember that parents are the one’s that’ll be taken them and
therefore play a part in Disney’s influence. Growing up, particularly for mothers, Cinderella
would of played a part in their own childhood and therefore Disney know by recreating and
rebranding this classic tale it’ll cause that essence or reminiscence for parents who’ll want to
pass it on to their own children. Due to this factor the movie has been rated a PG and
categorised within the family adventure genre.
Although the announcement for the movie was made in 2010, casting and cinematography did
not commence until September 2013. As mentioned earlier Disney is one of the largest
horizontally integrated companies in the world and therefore financially stable in all aspect of
production, distribution and exhibition. Whilst Walt Disney Pictures produced the movie it’ll be
distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. Since the movie is yet to be released the

2. budget has not been announced- this will become readily available once the box office figures
are in.
The way in which movies are marketed has changed drastically over the years with a multitude
of platforms being readily available more than ever before. The following part of the essay will
explore Cinderella’s contrasting methods of marketing.
TV trailers have become one of the most widely used and successful method of marketing due
to it being one of society’s most common leisure activity and its ability to meet such an
extensive audience. On the 31st
December 2014 the trailer for Cinderella aired on TV’s all across
the UK at midnight in order to keep with the theme of the movie. In order to target the right
audience, producers ensured that the advertisement was aired on children’s channels such as
their very own Disney channel. Having two younger siblings allowed me to determine that even
though general channels such as ITV did air the advertisement, it was shown much more
frequently on kids TV.
The online marketing campaign through web 2.0 for Cinderella is one of Walt Disney’s biggest
ones to date. In 2013 Disney released Frozen- one of the biggest box office success and highest
crossing movies. Just months after the trailer for Cinderella was released, a Frozen one began
spreading all over the internet promoting its new short film- the catch? Fans of Frozen have to
pay to see Cinderella in order to watch the Frozen short movie as it’s only going to be previewed
before the screening. The producers know that little girls who fell in love with frozen will want
to go and watch Cinderella purely because frozen is being shown beforehand; they’re using the
animation as an anchorage to attract the same audience.
The cinematic promotions for Cinderella are as expected; the trailer is shown during the
advertisements before a movie of a similar if not the same age rating begins. The producers are
targeting families with young children as that’s their chosen demographic for their product. By
showing the trailer within a movie with a similar rating and genre they’re ensuring the right
audience is being targeted. Promotional posters and a cut out of Cinderella are doted around
the cinema to keep the movie at the back of the mind and influence children.
Public transport is one of the easiest ways to ensure the a movie is promoted far and wide; from
my own experience, many of times I’ve been out and about and found out about a movie
because of a poster across a bus or at a stop. As well as this billboards are another effective
method of marketing; in a recent study carried out by Arbitron they discovered that 71%
percent of drivers take notice of roadside advertisement whilst 56% learned of an event or
product that interested them through this. The producers of Cinderella have used both of these
methods in order to capture the attention of children as its only natural for them to be looking
at their surroundings on a car ride.
Newspapers and magazines are an easy way for producers to draw in adult audiences- parents
who’ll be taking their children to the movies on a rainy day. The producers of Cinderella allowed
the Guardian newspaper to release an exclusive review of the movie in order to provide it with a

3. good image, whilst Glamour and The Hollywood Reporter released poster sneak peeks and
exclusive interview in order to create hype; these will have been contracted deals made
between the producers and print media companies.
More often than not a parent will search for movies online on a rainy day; the producers of
Cinderella have put themselves out there. They have pages set up on IMBD, Rotten Tomatoes
and Movie Insider. As well as this they’ve made themselves apparent within social media- an
official promotional page has been set up in which you can view exclusive interviews, trailers,
get movie updates, cinema listing and teasers. Due to the high volume of traffic on social media
it allows them to increase brand awareness.
With such a wide variety of marketing come’s popularity and awareness therefore creating
discussions between children and parents alike; word of mouth alone is a form of market in its
own right. We’re marketing the movie between ourselves.
All of the above are examples of how producers have targeted the audience- the marketing
campaigns have been showcased in areas where they’ll be viewed by the right audience.
Anchorage is a method used by all movie producers in order to bait an audience- it’s the way in
which they draw us into watching or purchasing the piece of media text. For example, more
often than not a major star will be plastered front and centre on a poster for a movie he’s
staring in- this is known as star theory and is a perfectly executed method used again and again
in order to attract audiences.
The way in which the poster for Cinderella has been designed is no coincidence; they’ve cleverly
anchored the imagery at both children and parents in order to tailor to both audiences. The
Guttenberg design theory has been applied in order to determine the layout- the theory
determines that our eyes sweep across the page in a series of horizontal movements.
When we first place our eyes on the poster we’re drawn to the dramatic skyline within the
primary optical area, we’re then taken to the strong fallow area where we wonder over the face

4. of the protagonist before moving to the weak fallow and terminal area located in the bottom
left and right hand corner.
All the imagery within the poster when placed together screams the movie frozen- one of the
biggest animate blockbusters of all time. The majority of our page is taken up with a blonde,
beautiful, young lady dressed in a vivid blue dress- a real life replica of Elsa in the eyes of a child.
In the movie Frozen our protagonist is seen to be wearing in a sky blue dress with her long
blonde locks flowing behind her; this is the iconic image that girl all over the world are trying to
recreate and exactly what produces have presented us with on the poster. Even the tiniest detail
such as the curliness within our protagonist hair and pale skin has been made to appear like
Elsa’s- even though in the original animated story of Cinderella she showcased straight hair.
One of the main themes behind frozen is the weather and Elsa’s ability to change it. Within the
poster of frozen we’re presented with this dramatic sky almost acting as homage to the
animated movie; girls are further led to believe that it’ll be similar.
Although the protagonist has been made to appear like Elsa within the poster, this is to anchor
the children. In order to tailor to the parents, star theory has been applied; the protagonist of
the movie is Lily James- an actor from ITV’s hit drama downtown abbey. By placing a well-
known, loved, iconic British character on the poster they’re increasing the curiosity of parents
whilst also providing the indication that it’ll be a good movie since she’s an award winning
actress.
The weak fallow and terminal area are where our eyes are drawn to last; within this section the
movie title and production company has been provided. The Disney logo alone is an anchor in its
own right- it’s a well trusted brand by parents that has produced great family movies for
generations.
Since Frozen was such a popular animation the following poster is leading children to believe
that the movie is going to be a real life recreation, therefore creating intertextuality with the
two which in turn anchors them in and forces parents to take them to view the movie.
In order to gather research about audiences and their preferences before a movie goes into
production, they’ll use qualitative, quantative, secondary and primary methods. This is to make
sure they target the right movie right movie at the right demographic.
In 2008 DreamWorks animation bought the rights to Adam Rex’s 2007 children’s book ‘The True
Meaning of Smekday’- in June of 2012 it was revealed the movie would be released under the
title Happy Smekday, however this was later changed to its current cinematic title Home.
Twentieth century fox later joined up with DreamWorks for the project as distributors and
announced the release date was set for the 27th
March 2015.
Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO of DreamWorks animation stated that the reasoning behind its spring
release date is that it’s a less competitive window. The movie is directed by animator Tim

5. Johnson and stars an ensemble cast made up of Rihanna, Jim Parsons, Jennifer Lopez and Steve
Martin. The movie is categorised under the family adventure genre and aims to appeal to
families with young children- hence the PG rating and half-term release date. However this is
also apparent by the fact that DreamWorks only produce movies for this particular audience.
With a budget of $132 million it’s expected to be one of the production company’s biggest
animation box office successes.
The movie plot follows an alien race led by captain Smek and their mission to invade earth in
order to avoid their enemy- in doing so, they send humans to live on a desert planet thinking
they’re doing them a favour. A young girl by the name of Tip is on the run to find her mother
Lucy; along the way she meets oh- a banished alien who accidentally notified the enemy of his
people’s whereabouts. Although the plot may seem as if it’s designed for an older audience, it’s
very sinister and consists of friendly looking animations and comical references designed to
appeal to children. DreamWorks animations may not be as influential as Disney’s princesses,
however they’re comical, light hearted and always provide children with a notion of friendship
and love, making them appealing to all. The following part of the essay will look at Homes
contrasting methods of marketing over a multitude of platforms.
As mentioned earlier, watching TV is one of society’s most common leisurely activities, hence
why trailers are such a successful methods of marketing. Unlike Cinderella which was advertised
on Disney channel due to the stereotype of it being a girls movie, Home was aired on more
neutral channels such as Boomerang and Nickelodeon that consist of a more apparent mixed
gender audience. Although I have seen the trailer shown on general stations such as ITV, it’s not
been as frequent; the only reason it is broadcasted on this channel is to make parents aware. By
marketing the movie on kids TV, producers are ensuring they’re targeting the right audience.
The online marketing campaign through web 2.0 for home is designed to attract parents as
they’re the most frequent users. The most apparent aspect for me is the fact that the you tube
trailer and banner advertisements make it noticeably clear that the movie is released in half
term; the producers are targeting parents by providing them with a half-term activity.
The cinematic promotions for Home are as expected; the trailer is shown during the
advertisements of a movie with a similar if not the same age rating and genre. The producers
know that they’re chosen demographic will be interested in the movie as they’re watching a
similar one already; there would be no point in showing the trailer for Home in an 18 horror
movie. Cinematic posters are doted around the cinema in order to keep the movie at the
forefront of children’s mind- they want them to be continuously aware of the piece of media
text.
Public transport is one of the easiest ways to ensure the a movie is promoted far and wide; from
my own experience, many of times I’ve been out and about and found out about a movie
because of a poster across a bus or at a stop. As well as this billboards are another effective
method of marketing; in a recent study carried out by Arbitron they discovered that 71%

6. percent of drivers take notice of roadside advertisement whilst 56% learned of an event or
product that interested them through this. The producers of Home have used both of these
methods in order to capture the attention of children as its only natural for them to be looking
at their surroundings on a car ride.
The producers of Home have joined up with the fast food chain McDonalds in order to promote
the movie- it will be the theme on the happy meal boxes for children as well as the toy that
they’ll receive. The producers are influencing children in all aspects of their daily life by
continuously surrounding them with the movie. Having the toy will encourage them to want to
watch the movie and find out more.
Parents will often turn to the internet to find an activity for a rainy day; the producers of home
have put themselves out there. As well as having pages set up on IMBD, rotten tomatoes and
movie insider they can also be found on social media through their official Facebook page- here
you can find trailer, exclusive interviews, sneak peeks, release dates, events and updates. Social
media gains a high volume of traffic, therefore allowing producers to increase brand awareness.
A multitude of competitions have been set up in order to promote the movie before it’s even
been released- producers are engaging the audience and creating hype. An example of this is
the one they set up on Facebook on the 11th
March 2015- the five people who give the best
reason as to why they could give oh a great home win a plush toy replica figure of him.
Newspaper and magazines allow producers to draw in adult audiences whilst the brightly
colored images may attract younger viewers. Variety- a print and online entertainment
magazine- released an exclusive review of the movie- the perfect way for producers to draw in
failies that have an interest in movies.
At INTU Trafford centre on the 7th March, an exclusive stand was set up in order to promote the
movie ang get children hyped up and interested in it. A life size 'Oh' was seen walking around
taking photographs whilst children could have there face's painted to match hes. Producers are
building up excitmet for the movie in order to attract audiences.
DreawWorks animations have again used anchorage in there promotionl methods in order to
attract audiences. Star theory has been applied in order to attract older audiences- whilst
children are drawn in by the bright animations, adults want to know who'll be voicing the
characters in order to determine wether they'll be discreet humour catered towards them. For
example, the star of the movie is Jim Parson from the hit TV adult comedy The big Bang Theory.

7. The cinematic poster for Home has been tailored at both children and adults; the Guttenberg
Design Theory has been applied in order to determine the layout which in turn anchors the
audiences.
Our eyes are instantly drawn to the primary optical and strong fallow areas within the poster;
the first thing we notice is a short and snappy quote which leaves us wanting more. Next we're
take the DreamWorks Animation logo- although it's written in the smallest font of all the text,
it's the main anchorage of teh poster. DreamWorks is a well trusted production company that
has produced great movies for years- one of the main attraction point of their films is the fact
they incorporate discreet adult humour whilst also catering t children. This fact alone
encourages will encourage parents to take their children to see the oiece of media text. The
largest of the text is the movies name- ths is an important factors as it allows parents and
children to know what it is exactly they're keeping an eye out for in cinemas.
Within the weak fallow and terminal area- the point in which are eyes are drawn to last- has
been catered towards children. The brightly coloured animations attract children and provide a
'bond'- they're being made aware of the main characters.
As mentioned earlier, producers will carry out primary, secondary, quantative and qualatative
research in order to find out information about audiences before a film goes into prodution.
Producers will gather information about their attitudes, knowledge, behaviours, interests and
preferences based on a multitude of factors such as gender, age and ethnicity.
Although the research may be time consuming, it's an important factor in order to target the
product at the right people and avoid waisting money and resources.
Methods of gathering research can include questionaires, focus groups, surveys, online forums,
magazine reviews and interviews.
Producers can look at internet forums for a movie of a similar genre as to the one they want to
make, as members will often discuss what they hope to see- especially if they're making an
adaption of a book. Interviews and focus groups allow audience to discuss what they hope to
see, what works and what doesnt whilst it provides producers the opportunity to as questions.

8. Questionaires and Surveys allows producers to gather specific informstio they want to know in a
simple way that'll ensure audieces will respond too.