RESEARCH: WHAT SETS THE FILM APART?

I have researched how Entertainment One UK thinks distributors pick out the film's Unique Selling Point (USP) or hook.

Kezia Williams describes how that when deciding what the USP is, a distributor will look at many elements of the film; for example: how the story line differs from other films, other key elements of the story, who stars in the film, what were they in their most recent film, where was it made. These questions are all compiled and are highlighted in the films trailer in order to entice an audience to want to go and watch their film. 

The distributors can start working with the film campaign at any stage. This could be as early as from the conception of the film script, so the distributors can get a sense of the film and what parts of the film are most powerful. They could start when the footage is first seen, or even when the film is finalised. 

When the film is finalised this is the most important part of the distribution phase of the film. This is what helps to develop the film's hooks and what they can focus on when trying to market the film. 

Chris Besseling, the director of marketing at Pathe UK puts emphasis on the market and the marketplace for certain types of films and what should be considered when trying to promote a film. 

Things to be considered when promoting a film would be:

• The Unique Selling Point (USP) of the film which can be targeted to entice and audience
• Who is the target audience? this has to be done as early as possible to maximize the efficiency of the marketing campaign
• What are the key strengths of the film that the distributor will look to exploit in every which way possible in order to make the campaign for the film to be as effective as possible
• Any potential challenges that could be encountered upon the weekend of release for the film

Once everything has been thought out and the strengths and challenges have been outlined, the position of the film come week of release will be determined and the marketing campaign will be outlined. The key selling points of the film will also be worked out, this could include:

• Director (what films have they previously directed, were they successful?)
• Awards (if applicable)
• Reviews
• Cast
• Has the film been based on a novel or true story?
• The storyline, in terms of genre, is it a blockbuster or indie film?

In terms of blockbuster films, the use of CGI can also be used as a key selling point for the film. Indie films have the more challenging task of establishing themselves as a breakthrough film, and therefore must work harder to convince their audience it is a must see come week of release. There are some methods Indie films can utilise to help: emotional resonance and/or the thought provoking message behind them, like the film I, Daniel Blake has as it challenged the social system.