3. The James Bond film franchise consists of primarily
action-thriller films, and Skyfall will be no exception.
The movie is set to feature the combination of high-
octane action and riveting espionage that has
become a staple of the Bond franchise.
Films of the action genre are often marketed in a
manner specific to their targeted demographics. For
example, a trailer for Skyfall would showcase the
action and the heroism of the main character above
all else. A trailer for Johnny English, on the other
hand, would play up the comedy aspects of the main
character instead.
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4. Skyfall belongs to the mixed genre of action-thriller.
This genre is also home to such films as Ocean’s
Eleven, Inception and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. I
chose to compare Skyfall to these three films as they
have all been released to cinemas within the past 10
years, making the similarities and differences
between them easier to analyse. The methods of
production and marketing the aforementioned films
have shared many similarities with Skyfall. They were
also known for their unique advertising campaigns,
as will be detailed in a later slide.
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5. The target audience for Skyfall consists of mature
viewers from the ages of 18 to 24. It is marketed
towards viewers of these ages because both the
franchise and the genre are known to be more
appealing to young adults.
Skyfall carries on from the previous two Bond films,
Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace, which were
noticeably more action-oriented. Due to this, viewers
do not necessarily have to be fond of the James Bond
franchise or even have seen any of the previous films
for this film to appeal to them.
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6. Skyfall is being produced by the London-based film
company Eon Productions in conjunction with the
holding company Danjaq LLC. Eon is renowned for
producing the entire James Bond film series and
Danjaq is responsible for the copyright and
trademarks on the material in James Bond films.
The film will be distributed between media giant
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc and Sony subsidiary
Columbia Pictures. The two companies are known for
their involvement in the James Bond franchise as the
primary distributors of almost every film since the
franchise’s debut in 1962.
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7. Skyfall is a production based in the UK. Eon
Productions, the studio responsible for the film, is
located in London. Shooting for the film also began
in and around London. The later stages of
production took place in Turkey, where the shooting
is currently on-going.
Skyfall is due to be released later this year in
approximately eighty countries. The UK will be one
of the first countries to release the film in cinemas
during October. It will be released to the rest of
Europe and the US shortly after. The film is expected
to be an international blockbuster.
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8. The most notable method of marketing Skyfall, and
James Bond films in general, has been through the
use of product placement. The titular character is to
be seen drinking Heineken beer in at least one scene
of the latest film. The beer brand has been tied-in
with the Bond film franchise for fifteen years.
The official James Bond Twitter feed posted a photo
from production on the Friday of every week shortly
after filming began in January. There is also a video
game in the works to celebrate the fiftieth
anniversary of the film franchise that will cover six
Bond films from history, concluding with Skyfall.
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9. Ocean’s Eleven (2002) – Vauxhall released an advert for
their new model of Astra the style of Ocean’s Eleven to
promote both the film and the car.
Inception (2010) – The official website gradually changed
during the months following the film’s release, revealing
new material related to the film, such as posters, trailers
and even a game.
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) – A ‘guerrilla’ marketing
campaign was initiated, in which four employees dressed
up as 1970’s-era secret agents placed top-secret
documents in various public places around London.
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