Twitter Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Jason Reitman's Interview Pie Chart
Filed under: Comedy », Drama », New Releases », Paramount », Fandom », Movie Marketing », George Clooney », Images »
Jason Reitman, whose next film Up in the Air comes out on December 4th, posted a very funny image on Twitter recently – a pie chart detailing the different things that people have asked him in recent interviews. The top three were about George Clooney (111 people), the economy (96 people), and his next project (78 people). The fourth is a little more confusing, as it just reads "Real People," so apparently 77 people asked him about real people. Maybe they wanted to know if the people being laid off in the movie were real people? Who's to say what goes through the murky depths of the mind of a journalist?
I humbly ask Jason Reitman to make a pie chart of his answers. Here's what I picture it to look like.
111 people: "Clooney is such a prankster! But he's also a great serious actor. He's the Cary Grant of our times. Sometimes we have moustache contests."
96 people: "The economy sucks. Seriously though, I've never been laid off, but if I had to be laid off, I'd hope George Clooney would do it."
78 people: "My next project will be with George Clooney. Actually, it will be catching up on all the sleep I lost talking to you people and answering the same damn questions over and over again."
In one jpeg, Reitman manages to sum up the exhausting paces that filmmakers, actors, musicians, et al are put through to get their names and faces and projects out there, the laziness of some journalists, and the terror that faces every journalist that wants to be good at what they do and engender an interesting discussion that is hopefully pleasant and/or illuminating (but at the very least not boring) for everyone involved, including the reader.
If you could ask Jason Reitman anything, what would it be?
Paramount's 'Paranormal Activity' Pays Off
Filed under: Horror », Independent », Paramount », Box Office », Fandom », Exhibition », Newsstand »
Paramount has been doing a really interesting campaign for the totally terrifying Paranormal Activity, which has been relying on packed midnight screenings from Thursday through Saturday, word of mouth, and a special Twitter feed, TweetYourScream, that reTweets viewers reactions, to spread the buzz. This gambit has paid off in a big way for the 2007 movie that was made for an estimated $11,000 according to IMDb Pro. [FYI: IMDb is not always the most reliable source of info, as Wikipedia reports that its budget was $15,000. Suffice it to say, it's super low-budget.]Based on demand and earnings -- according to Paramount, its total gross has been $535,000 so far and its midnight screenings, which were only held from Thursday through Saturday nights, were sold out in the 33 cities where it was playing -- Paramount is going to expand Paranormal Activity's release to 40 markets, and not just at midnight, beginning Friday, October 9th.
Viewers can request the movie in their area on Eventful.
Have you seen Paranormal Activity? If so, how did you hear about it? Are you following or participating in its Twitter feed? I'm curious to see if other big-name studios will follow suit since this experiment has obviously paid off, for both horror fans who are ready to face their fears of things that go bump in the night (brrr!) and for Paramount.
The Internet Takes Control of Movie Marketing
Filed under: New Line », Fandom », Tech Stuff »
A while back I wrote a little post about a movie that I would never see, and plenty of folks lined up to tell me that it was impossible to make a decision about a movie through word of mouth or what I had read on the Internet. Of course, I disagreed, because frankly how else can I make a decision about where to spend my hard earned time and money? But if I had to blame anyone for keeping me away from the movie theater that day, I'm going to have to blame the Internet. Yup, it was thanks to those sneak peeks and early screenings described in detail online that helped me make my decision before those battling robots ever took the stage. People are talking about movies more now than ever before thanks to social networking tools like Twitter and Facebook, and a new study from New Line's Web guru Gordon Paddison has proven that when it comes to movie marketing, all the action really is on the web.What the report seems to be saying is that you need to know your audience if you want to sell your movie. Now, there are some daunting statistics that prove the power of the Internet when it comes to going to the movies, and if you aren't buying the effect the net can have on a film's success, keep in mind that 94% of all moviegoers are online, and 73% of moviegoers surveyed have profiles on a social networking site -- and if people are talking, you want to make sure it's positive because as the old commercial goes, they tell two friends, and they tell two friends, and before you know it, you have a flop on your hands.
After the jump: so what does this all mean for movie marketers?
'Inglourious Basterds' is Tarantino's Top Earner - Because of Twitter?
Filed under: Box Office », Exhibition », The Weinstein Co. », Brad Pitt », Quentin Tarantino », Movie Marketing »
In what could be read as a big "nyah, told you so" press release, The Weinstein Company would like you all to know that Inglourious Basterds has not only grossed over $108M* in North America but has now out-earned Pulp Fiction, which was previously Tarantino's biggest money-maker to date.
But what's strange is that TWC is giving some of the credit to "an innovative marketing plan. The film was the first to make use of Twitter and other social networking sites in such a direct fashion, even involving Twitter in the film's LA premiere," according to the press release.
Harvey Weinstein is even quoted as saying, "It was great working with Biz Stone at Twitter on Inglourious. It took the campaign to another level."
Okay, what have I missed? How was the Inglourious campaign different from any other of the studios' use of Twitter or Facebook to promote movies through links, contests, and meet-ups? I don't even recall seeing anything on Twitter about it, other than the normal studios using Twitter to cross-pollinate coverage.
Twitter: Bringing You Ever Closer to the Fame Flame
Filed under: Fandom », Tech Stuff »
If you're on Twitter, you already know that it's a drug. It's like a big get-together where you can talk to hundreds of people without committing yourself too seriously and before you know it ... poof ... you've just spent three hours talking about your summer reading. I've made a concerted effort to not let it overtake my life and I've generally succeeded. But one aspect of Twitter that I find so pathetically alluring is the celebrity follow. Now, my time on Cinematical has already introduced me to a lot of Big Names, and while it's always fun and exciting to meet someone you like onscreen, it's often just work. Often, it's awkward work. I say that not to brag or play down the experience, but to stress that chasing celebrities just isn't my thing. Except on Twitter.
Twitter is like this shadowy, secret party where Hollywood's creme de la creme are eating, drinking, laughing, and filming, and they're coyly letting you watch. They casually drop names and TwitPics, and there's something about it that's so alluring once paired with a timestamp. The most recent example (and the one @scotteweinberg dared me to write about) was this Tweet from @F_Gary_Gray, director of the upcoming Law Abiding Citizen:
Continued below the jump
'Judge Dredd' Remake News: Alex Garland Writing the Screenplay
Filed under: Action », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Scripts »
Less than a year ago it was made known that a new adaptation of the ongoing dystopian action comic Judge Dredd was in the works, which I think is fair to say came as a surprise to most everyone. Not that the comic property became a poisoned well to return to after Dredd's first trip to the big screen, the bulky 1995 critical and commercial flop starring Sylvester Stallone and Rob Schneider in arguably his most annoying role ever. But you gotta admit it takes cojones to willingly associate millions upon millions of dollars with a title that is most often remembered in jest. Yet comic owner Rebellion and the production company DNA Films exhibited no signs of embarrassment in making the announcement last December that they were bringing the lawgiver back.Now, thanks to the planet's newest and most reliable source of unimpeachable news, Twitter, we know just why those two British studios are comfortable wrestling Dredd's film credibility away from the lampooning panelists of an I Love the '90s VH1 special. Comic artist Mark "Jock" Simpson laid out the good news quite simply in a tweet, "working through script visuals for JUDGE DREDD movie. Alex Garland writes a great script."
Sure, it's just a tweet, but it's still bellied with information. One, it implies the script is not only great but completed. Two, the film is in active pre-production/pre-visualization, which is farther along that most thought.
Read the rest over at SciFi Squad
Cinematical Twitter Update: We Love Tweeting
Filed under: Geek Report »
Hey all! Since our last report, a few new Cine-staff members have joined the mix, plus we're pleased to announce that the official Cinematical Twitter account is new and improved. Up till now it's just been a basic RSS feed, but now it'll be a more streamlined (once an hour) feed, plus an infusion of random fun from myself and Erik Davis. If you're a flick junkie who likes to be up-to-date on all the news, reviews, and casting to-dos, then Twitter has lots of great resources. We hope to be one of your favorites.And if you'd like to follow the personal ramblings of your favorite Cinematical scribes, you can do so thusly: Jessica Barnes, Monika Bartyzel, Erik Davis, William Goss, Kevin Kelly, Jette Kernion, Peter Martin, Jenni Miller, Eugene Novikov, Elisabeth Rappe, Nick Schager, Eric Snider, Dawn Taylor, Scott Weinberg (Still holding out: Jeffrey Anderson, Matt Bradshaw, and Todd Gilchrist!) Also worth a follow: Moviefone!
Feedback regarding Cinematical's Twitter presence is, of course, highly welcome. Especially nice stuff. See you @Cinematical!
Watch This: Celebrity Twitter Overkill
Filed under: Celebrities and Controversy », Fandom », Trailers and Clips »
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Much like Facebook and MySpace (to a certain degree), Twitter is fastly becoming that annoying thing that everyone uses (and talks about) way too much -- making it so those folks who go out of their way not to partake in stuff everyone else is doing will soon ditch Twitter in an effort to discover the next big, temporary, much talked-about time-waster before it becomes the next big, temporary, much talked-about time-waster. Does that even make sense?
During your daily internet browsing, you've probably already stumbled across one or two celebrity Twitter lists and decided to follow P. Diddy because you thought it might be important to know how many bowel movements he makes each day. To each his (or her) own; I'm not saying you're wrong for following celebs on Twitter (heck, I'm also on Twitter and happen to follow a few myself), but you have to admit the whole thing has reached a pretty ridiculous point. Which finally brings me to my point: Continuing in their series of hilarious animated shorts, Current has created a sequel to their previous Twitter video and this one is all about our obsession with following celebrities on Twitter. With appearances from Ashton Kutcher, Demi Moore, P. Diddy, Perez Hilton, Shaq and Jimmy Fallon, this should, at the very least, put a smile on your face and help you get through the rest of the day. Check it out below ...
Movie Marketing Invades Twitter - Do You Even Care?
Filed under: Fandom », Tech Stuff », Movie Marketing »
So, who out there is already sick of hearing about Twitter? I know there are a few people in my life that can't help but roll their eyes when they even hear the word, but I'll totally admit it to being full fledged addict. The number of smart-phone users and people on social networks like Twitter are reaching all-time highs, and in a piece for Variety, Susan Lambert looked at some of the ways in which movie studios are looking to cash in. But the bad news is that nobody is quite sure about whether or not this new style of advertising is a success. Now that four out of the six majors already have Twitter accounts, and poster launches and ARG games are popping up daily, it would seem that everyone loves a new toy -- whether it works or not.If you think back to a year ago, the studios were all about creating viral campaigns (Blame J.J. Abrams if you must) and fans could spend hours pouring over HTML code to find a hidden message that located a secret 'hatch' or a photo of a mutated whale. But the original ARG-style viral campaigns have already faded away, and while there are still a few of them out there, they haven't exactly been a success (case in point: how many of you out there signed up for Emmerich's IHC lottery? That's what I thought). I think the biggest deterrent for fans was that if you wanted to play along, it was going to be an awful lot of work. But with the automation of services like Twitter or a dedicated movie app on your smart-phone, it's a one time deal. If you don't have time to take down Skynet by engaging in a complicated treasure hunt, why not just sign up as part of the Human Resistance and John Connor will do the work for you?
After the jump find out if Twitter is really that different from any other advertising medium...
Twitter Movie Geeks Collaborate on #TroopFlix Initiative!
Filed under: Fandom », Distribution », Home Entertainment »
From the "things we shoulda thought of years ago" department: Our old pal Scott Neumyer recently decided, for fun, that he would donate 100 of his own DVDs to American troops stationed overseas, but then upped it to 200 after he achieved 2,000 "followers" on Twitter. But then the idea got a lot bigger -- and then more people wanted to donate -- and then Scott found himself the ringleader of a very large Twitter movement: Get our troops some movies, dammit! We're now calling it #TroopFlix.I jumped in to donate five Philly-philmed phlicks (Rocky, The Sixth Sense, 12 Monkeys, Trading Places, and Mannequin), but not before Scott netted support from classy outfits like RottenTomatoes, Funimation, Shakefire, and Miramax Films -- and then the movie geek collective spoke up, which resulted in even more digital donations. But, like most hardcore movie nuts, we're just so damn greedy. We want more! Imagine how good it would feel knowing that YOUR old copy of Finding Nemo is making a special ops dude weep just a little. Or if YOUR extra copy of Knocked Up could help take the edge off after a particularly miserable day. Or if YOUR copy of Shawshank could lift the spirits of an unhappy medic...
Anyway, you get the point: To get involved (or just read along with the donation drive), check out Scott's Twitter page right here. And since you're on the site already, look at my Twitter as well. I'm funnier than Scott. And raunchier.
Indie Roundup: 'Sweetgrass,' 'Clarkworld,' 'Broken Embraces'
Shelf Life: Fight Club_thumbnail.jpg)
Watch: Famous 'Matrix' Scene Re-Created with LEGOs
Peter Jackson Says Spielberg's 'Tintin' is Done Filming, but...
Interracial Harmony: 'Ninja Assassin' vs. 'Blind Side'
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