With the Golden Globes curtailed and the Oscars in doubt, movie marketers could lose the coveted Red Carpet to promote their films.
As a result of the ongoing writers’ strike, NBC yesterday cut the Golden Globe’s black-tie broadcast in favor of a scaled down press conference to announce the winners.
The decision doesn’t bode well for the Oscars, a three-hour extravaganza that airs in late February and is even more critical to marketers’ plans.
Traditionally, award shows are as much about selling and promoting movies as they are about recognizing good work. Without star-studded telecasts to draw big audiences, the marketing power of awards season is greatly diminished.
“The cache of the award is what people are trying to cash in on,” said one film studio executive. “The ability to market your movie as an award winner is hampered somewhat without the show.”
Even more so than the Globes, the Academy Awards play a key role in maximizing the money-making potential of movies.
Oscar nominations and awards can translate into bigger box office and higher DVD sales, which is why studios spend heavily to promote contenders.
But just as important as the actual nomination that can be splashed in movie ads is the buzz that is generated by millions of TV viewers talking about the race in the run-up to the glitzy award telecasts – and the excitement fueled by actually watching the event itself.
As a result, it’s not unusually for a studio to spend $25 million on a film in a bid to nab Hollywood’s highest honor.
Awards season can be especially crucial for smaller films or critical darlings that might otherwise languish without all the awards buzz. When a film gets nominated, people will go to the theater just to see what all the fuss is about.
“Million Dollar Baby” and “American Beauty” are examples of films that got a noticeable boost at the box office after their Oscar wins, according to box-office analyst Paul Dergarabedian.
“No Country for Old Men,” which has received four Golden Globe nominations, is the type of film that could benefit from all the attention at the awards show.
“[It] has done well but it’s not a $100 million film yet,” Dergarabedian said. “For films like that, as they expand into wider release, it definitely helps to have the Oscar buzz.”
The biggest fear among Hollywood marketers is that slapping “Academy Award Nominee” on a movie ad – without an actual Oscar telecast – will no longer resonate with filmgoers as in the past.
It remains to be seen whether the studios will scale back their ad spending if either the Globes or Oscars are scrapped.