The Event Movie: Marketing Filmed Entertainment for

Transnational Media Corporations

S. JöckelEntertainment
Filmed and T. Döbler

Sven Jöckel
Ilmenau Technical University, Germany

Thomas Döbler
MFG Foundation, Stuttgart, Germany

Films have become an essential asset to transnational media corporations (TNMCs) such as Sony, Time
Warner, or Disney. Since the 1990s these and other corporations have utilized a strategy called event movie.
The central goal of this marketing strategy is to ensure the success of a film, as well as to provide content for
the many different divisions owned or controlled by TNMCs, for example home entertainment, cable, and
pay-television. The event movie strategy takes advantage of the film industry’s macro structure and com-
bines established concepts (blockbuster, high-concept marketing) with new business models, turning the
value chain into a value cycle. This article describes an analytical framework for the event movie strategy
that is used by the world’s leading TNMCs. As a conclusion, the framework of the event movie strategy can
be applied to better understand the success of individual films. The concept can also be expanded to describe
the individual TNMC’s strategy within the field of audiovisual content.

Accounting for Success in Hollywood
In mid-December 2001 the first part of The Lord of the
Rings saga—The Fellowship of the Ring—was released in cine-
mas from New York to Cape Town within a 2 week time
period. Within a few weeks hobbits, elves, and Sauron
were no longer just insignia of fantasy and science fic-
tion fans but rather a hot topic in school yards, at dinner
parties, or during office breaks. The Lord of the Rings: The
Fellowship of the Ring (Jackson, 2001) had indeed become a
water-cooler film experience (Allen, 1999), a film that ev-
eryone seemed to be talking about.
By 2004 New Line Cinema’s The Lord of the Rings tril-
ogy had generated gross box office revenues of close to
$3 billion, turning the franchise into the “Lord of the
Box office” (Time Warner Profile 2004, 2004, p. 18). More
than half of these revenues were generated outside the
United States. Impressive as these figures are, they
only represent a rather small portion of the whole rev-
Address correspondence to Sven Jöckel, Ilmenau Technical Univer-
sity, Institute of Media and Communication Science, Department of
Media Management, Am Eichicht 1, 98693 Ilmenau, Germany.
E-mail: sven.joeckel@tu-ilmenau.de
enue stream. Ancillary markets, especially the home
entertainment sector, provide a substantial additional
source of revenue. Since the mid 1990s, the economic
importance of these secondary markets has exceeded
that of the initial film exhibition sector (Litman,
2000).
The Lord of the Rings trilogy is not the only recent exam-
ple of this new kind of globally successful film franchise.
Film series like Jurassic Park (Universal, 1993, 1997, 2001),
Harry Potter (Time Warner, 2001, 2002, 2004), or Spi-
der-Man (Columbia, 2002, 2004) have created brand
names for a wide spectrum of merchandises, resulting in
a multibillion dollar business (see Table 1).
Still, multimillion dollar productions such as King Ar-
thur (Fuqua, 2004) or Godzilla (Emmerich, 1998) often do
not achieve the box office figures expected by their pro-
ducers. At the same time, a number of mechanisms are
put into motion by transnational media corporations
(TNMCs) to safeguard these high-budget productions
against failure. In this article, we argue that the event
movie strategy is a central risk-reducing strategy for films.
The purpose of this article is to provide an analytical
framework that explains the basic premise of the event
movie strategy as practiced by the world’s leading TNMCs.

84 The International Journal on Media Management, 8(2), 84–91

 Table 1. Event Movie Franchises

Franchise Media Conglomerate Year/(Number of Films) Production Budget Combined World Box Office Gross

The Lord of the Rings Time Warner (New Line) 2001/2002/2003 (3) $281 million $2.91 billion
Harry Potter Time Warner 2001/2002/2004 (3) $360 million $2.63 billion
Jurassic Park Universal (Vivendi/NBC) 1993/1997/2001 (3) $229 million $1.90 billion
Matrix Time Warner 1999/2003/2003 (3) $300 million $1.62 billion
Spider-Man Sony 2002/2004 (2) $339 million $1.59 billion
Star Wars News Corp. 1999/2002 (2) (+3) $235 million $1.57 billion
Lara Croft–Tomb Raider Viacom 2001/2003 (2) $170 million $360 million
Pirates of the Caribbean Disney 2003 $125 million $650 million

Note. Generated by the authors using publicly available data from Box Office Mojo (n.d.) and The Internet Movie Data Base (n.d.).

The Event Movie—An Analytical
Framework
Contrary to the statements of other researchers that the
success of a given film can be statistically deduced
(Basuroy, Chatterjee, & Ravid, 2003; De Vany & Walls,
1999; Litman, 1983; Litman & Kohl, 1989), we argue that
before applying statistical models an analytical frame-
work must be outlined.1 In the advanced markets for au-
dio-visual content, different strategies are applied de-
manding specific tools for analysis. To scrutinize a film’s
success, the profound understanding of a TNMC’s strategy
in the film market is of essential importance.
Three distinct features characterize the event movie
strategy: First, event movies rely on established marketing
strategies, namely the blockbuster concept and high-con-
cept marketing (King, 2002; Wyatt, 1994). Second, the
event movie as a strategy is a business model used by
TNMCs to benefit from the industry’s macro structure
(Maltby, 2003). Third, on a textual basis, the aesthetic of
an event movie functions to satisfy different audience
groups that are differentiated both by region and media
(Fiske, 1987). In the following paragraphs, each of the
three aspects will be investigated, using empirical evi-
dence to select potential event movies.
The Premises of the Event Movie:
Blockbuster and High-Concept Marketing
It is generally assumed that the event movie concept was
kick-started in the early 1990s by films like Jurassic Park
(Spielberg, 1993; Blanchet, 2003; Maltby, 2003). However,
the roots of this development can be traced even further
back to the blockbuster concept of the late 1950s. The block-
buster strategy was employed to counteract the crisis of the
major studios in the postwar period. Sociodemographic
changes, higher incomes, and the increasing popularity of
television led to a dramatic decline in audience figures. The
Paramount Decrees (1948) forced the studios to sell their ex-
hibition branches, bringing an end to the vertically inte-
grated studios that had dominated much of the world film
market since the 1920s (Gomery, 1986). Being deprived of
their exhibition monopoly, the major players had to reduce
their output. The studios began to focus on fewer but more
expensive and extravagant pictures (White, 1990). The fi-
nancial crisis in the late 1960s (Londoner, 1985) and the
emergence of the auteur-based “New Hollywood” (Biskind,
1999) was only a brief halt on the road to higher budgets
that culminated in what is known as the ultra-high-budget
film (Balio, 1998) or, using the nomenclature of this re-
search, the event movie.
The goal of the event movie is to stand out from the line
of other, cheaper productions. An event movie becomes a
must-see that everybody seems to be talking about (King,
2002). Such films place a huge emphasis on certain pro-
duction values such as technological innovations (special
effects), elaborate sets, and stars. Only ultra-high-budget
films whose media attention is based on these production
values follow a clear event movie strategy.2
An above-average budget is only a small indicator for the
potential of a film to become an event movie. More impor-
tant are the extensive marketing activities that precede
and coincide with the release of an event movie. A success-
ful event movie has to enter the audience’s collective con-
sciousness before the film’s release to quickly recoup costs.
The high-concept marketing strategy that drives an event
movie was established in the late 1970s and reached its cli-
max in the 1980s. High-concept marketing—a term shaped by
marketing executives in the film industry—can be de-
scribed as a postclassical style of filmmaking, accentuating
the visual style of the film in exchange for a simplification
of characters and narratives. A film’s narrative, visual look,
soundtrack, and use of stars are integrated into its market-
ing (Maltby, 1998; Wyatt, 1994).
One way to achieve this integration is to base a film on
a presold property. Even before a high-concept film is go-
ing to be released, its basic ideas are already present all
over the world. Preestablished, successful properties—like
best selling novels, comics, or computer games—help a
film to enter a consumer’s consciousness by addressing es-
tablished schemes and scripts. As a result, the consumer’s
risk of seeing a film he or she will not like is reduced

Filmed Entertainment 85
(Franck & Opitz, 2003; Gehrau, 2003). In the case of the
event movie, the presold property strategy has been ex-
panded to the “presold property and sequel strategy.” Be-
ing based on two presold properties—for example a novel
and a prequel—the event movie is further protected
against failure (King, 2002; Wyatt, 1994).
By emphasizing visual appearance instead of narrative
coherence, high-concept marketing aims to create a film
that can be easily announced in a 30 sec teaser or televi-
sion ad. This brief visual exposure helps to ensure that the
film will get some attention from the potential viewer. Of-
ten different versions of trailers are used to reach differ-
ent audience groups. The case of Star Wars: Episode II–Attack
of the Clones (Lucas, 2002) illustrates this aspect rather viv-
idly. The trailers Forbidden Love (released 16.11.2001), Mys-
tery (09.11.2001), and Clone Wars (10.03.2002) had not only
been released months before the film (16.05.2002; re-
trieved from http://www.starwars.com/episode-ii/re-
lease/trailer), but each trailer focused on different aspects
of the film and were aimed at specific audience groups,
representing the film either as a romantic love story (For-
bidden Love) or as an action spectacle (Clone Wars).
Since the astonishing success of The Blair Witch Project
(Myrik & Sanchez, 1999), the Internet has become an addi-
tional marketing instrument. Star Wars: Episode I–The Phan-
tom Menace (Lucas, 1999) was the first event movie that ex-
ploited the potential of Internet marketing. Within 24 hr
of its launch the film’s trailer was downloaded one mil-
lion times (Schwenger, 2002). With the release of The Lord
of the Rings online marketing was established as a long
term marketing instrument. During the campaign for the
second part of the trilogy, The Lord of the Rings: The Two
Towers (Jackson, 2002), New Line reached a global audience
of 65 million Internet users. Individual homepages were
created and customized for each country as New Line mar-
keting executives wanted the “in-territory marketing to
have the voice of that territory” (Harris, 2002).
One can imagine that this kind of intensive, target
group specific marketing is expensive. The marketing ex-
penditure of an event movie is therefore higher than that of
other films. In 2004 the average marketing expenditure
was $34.4 million (Motion Picture Association of America
[MPAA], 2005). Table 2 illustrates that the marketing expen-
diture for several event movies is considerably higher. The
only exception, Star Wars: Episode II–Attack of the Clones (Lucas,
2002), can be easily explained in that Lucas Films was able to
promote the films through its merchandising partners.
With the growing threat of illegal Internet downloads
and the fact that films spend less and less time in the thea-
tres, the release of an event movie has to focus on a more
and more global dimension. As Hollywood accounting is
based on short-term loans (Cones, 1997) and an event movie
can be seen as a large investment by a TNMC with interests
in a lot of different areas (Chan-Olmsted & Chang, 2003),
the studio-distributor has a vital interest to amortize costs
86
rather quickly. These returns can then be reinvested in
other areas. With an increased marketing budget, the need
for a quick return of these investments becomes even more
urgent. Thus, to benefit from high-concept marketing,
event movies are forced to adopt a release pattern labeled as
saturation or wide release (Blanchet, 2003; Wyatt, 1994).
Event movies are released on a maximum number of
screens in an individual market. As shown in Table 2, the
gap between domestic (United States) and international re-
lease (United Kingdom, Germany) is rarely longer than 1
month. High-potential event movies such as The Lord of the
Rings: The Return of the King (Jackson, 2003) are often released
simultaneously on a worldwide basis. Such a global wide re-
lease is the ultima ratio for a TNMC: One universally appeal-
ing product is launched at the same time in almost all im-
portant markets to receive revenues as quickly as possible.
TNMCs and the Event Movie Strategy
Such a synchronized, global marketing strategy can only be
realized by TNMCs with subsidiaries in all major audiovi-
sual markets. The studios that once dominated the cinema
screens (Gomery, 1986) now dominate the global market
for audiovisual content (Gomery, 2000). Since the mid
1960s these “film studios” have gone through several waves
of mergers and acquisitions (Balio, 1998; Gomery, 1998), re-
sulting in the megamerger of AOL and Time Warner and
the more recent takeover of MGM/UA by Sony (Clark, 2004;
Laporte, 2005). Although the first wave of mergers saw the
studios being integrated in widely diversified conglomer-
ates such as Gulf & Western (Paramount), the more recent
mergers seem to be driven by the aim of providing access to
a scarce resource: content (Balio, 1998; Peltier, 2004). The
revenue generated by films themselves is only a small por-
tion of the overall revenue taken in by TNMCs (Blanchet,
2003; Maltby, 2003). However, since the studios opened
their film libraries for television, the access to film produc-
tions has become a major driving force behind several me-
dia merges (Wyatt, 1998). Such upstream vertical integra-
tion can be seen as a major instrument to safeguard the
TNMC against a shortage of content (Peltier, 2004). It is not
surprising that all but one (Bertelsmann) of the world’s
leading TNMC own at least one of the traditional Holly-
wood film studios (Chan-Olmsted & Chang, 2003).
The importance of event movies as content base for
TNMCs becomes especially apparent in the recent merg-
ers and acquisitions of Sony and Time Warner: The Japa-
nese-based entertainment company Sony now owns por-
tions of three Hollywood studios: MGM and its United
Artist branch plus Columbia Pictures. Event movie fran-
chises such as Spider-Man (Columbia) and James Bond (MGM)
are now combined under one roof. A similar situation can
be seen within the Time Warner universe as the company
benefits from three of the most successful franchises in re-
S. Jöckel and T. Döbler
 Table 2. Event Movie Marketing

Release Date

Estimated Number of Screens, 1.

Franchise TNMC Marketing Budget Weekend Domestic United States England Germany

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Time Warner (New Line) $50 million 3.703 12.17.2003 12.17.2003 12.17.2003
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Time Warner $50 million 3.855 06.04.2004 05.31.2004 06.03.2004
Jurassic Park III Universal (Vivendi/NBC) — 3.434 07.18.2001 07.20.2001 08.02.2001
The Matrix Revolutions Time Warner $35 million 3.502 11.05.2003 11.05.2003 11.05.2003
Spider-Man II Sony $50 million 4.152 06.30.2004 07.16.2004 07.08.2004
Star Wars: Episode II–Attack of the Clones News Corp. $25 million 3.161 05.16.2002 05.16.2002 05.16.2002
Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life Viacom $35 million 3.222 07.25.2003 08.22.2003 08.14.2003
Pirates of the Caribbean: … Black Pearl Disney $40 million 3.269 07.09.2003 08.08.2003 09.02.2003

Note. Generated by the authors using publicly available data from Box Office Mojo (n.d.) and The Internet Movie Data Base (n.d.). TNMC = transnational me-
dia corporation.

cent years: The Matrix (Warner Bros.), Harry Potter (Warner
Bros.), and The Lord of the Rings (New Line). It can be argued
that without James Bond and MGM’s film library, Sony
would not have paid close to $5 billion for a rather run
down studio, and without Lord of the Rings New Line Cin-
ema would have very likely been sold.
Movies and other filmed entertainment provide con-
tent for the various television channels, pay-television
platforms, and home entertainment markets that belong
to a TNMC (Balio, 1998; Gomery, 1998). Indeed, the poten-
tial story of success of an event movie does not stop after
the cinema. These developments allow new business mod-
els for the event movie to emerge.
The use of the classic windowing model as a price dis-
crimination (Owen & Wildman, 1992) is no longer the
only way to take advantage of different price prefer-
ences. The “versioning” price model (Zerdick et al., 2001)
has become a common element in the digital video disc
(DVD) market (Jöckel, 2005). There is no longer one sin-
gle film that is sold, but rather different versions com-
pete for the consumer’s money (Seeßlen, 2004). The re-re-
lease of Star Wars (Lucas, 1977) can be seen as a first
major example of this new business model (Schwenger,
2002). In 1997, just before the release of Star Wars: Episode
I–The Phantom Menace (Lucas, 1999), the lifecycle of the
20-year-old franchise was renewed by the release of the
“digitally remastered” versions of the original films. The
new premium product was packed with better sound, an
enhanced picture, and exclusive scenes that were not in-
cluded in the “standard product.” The most prominent
example of new versioning models is the The Lord of the
Rings franshise. Just 5 weeks before the release of The Lord
of the Rings: The Two Towers (Jackson, 2002), New Line re-
leased a special edition DVD box, with a new, more than
20 min longer version of the first part of the trilogy
(Hettrick & Netherby, 2002).
Different DVD versions with special bonus material or
extended film versions can be found for a wide range of
event movies such as King Arthur (Fuqua, 2004), Hulk (Lee,
2003), Spider-Man, or Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the
Black Pearl (Verbinski, 2003). Special trilogy boxes are
available for Star Wars: Episode II–Attack of the Clones (Lucas,
2002), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Cuarón,
2004), and The Matrix Revolutions (Wachowski &
Wachowski, 2003; see Table 3). With subsidiaries all over
the world, this strategy is not limited to a single market
but can be seen as a central element of the global event
movie strategy. In fact, because of the massive invest-
ment that is necessary to produce and market an event
movie, a global exploitation of the franchise becomes
the only way for a film to recoup its costs.
Only The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (Jackson,
2003) and Star Wars: Episode II–Attack of the Clones (Lucas,
2002) would have been profitable if they had only been
screened in U.S. cinemas (see Table 4). Pirates of the Carib-
bean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Verbinski, 2003), Harry Potter
and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Cuarón, 2004), and The Matrix
Revolutions (Wachowski & Wachowski, 2003), however, only
became profitable after worldwide exhibition. As for
films such as Hulk (Lee, 2003), King Arthur (Fuqua, 2004), or
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (Mostow, 2003), worldwide
exhibition is the only way to reduce the loss during cine-
matic exhibition. However, it can be expected that such
films will end up being profitable after their different ver-
sions have been released into the home entertainment
and television markets.
Summarizing these findings, it becomes evident that
the event movie strategy can only be applied by TNMCs
who have the financial power to take an initial loss on a
multimillion dollar film investment to see profit later on
in different stages of the value chain. It is essential to the
event movie strategy that the product can be globally mar-
keted both in cinemas as well as in ancillary markets. An
event movie provides content that can be exploited in dif-
ferent segments of a diversified TNMC. To appeal to differ-
ent audiences in theaters and in the home entertainment
market, domestic and international, the event movie has
to apply certain textual elements.

Filmed Entertainment 87
 Table 3. Event Movie Merchandising

New Business
Models in DVD Theme Reworked in …
Franchise Media Conglomerate Presold Property Market Genre/Genre Mix (Examples)

The Lord of the Rings Time Warner (New Line) Novel/sequel Extended version Fantasy/adventure/action Videogames, family
games, toys
Harry Potter Time Warner Novel/sequel Trilogy box Adventure/fantasy/family Videogames, family
games, toys
Jurassic Park Universal (Vivendi/NBC) Sequel Collector’s edition Horror/science Videogames, toys
fiction/adventure/action
Matrix Time Warner Sequel Trilogy special Science Videogames, toys
fiction/action/thriller
Spider-Man Sony Comic/sequel 3 DVD box Action/science Videogames, toys,
fiction/thriller/fantasy TV series
Star Wars News Corp. Sequel Trilogy box Science Videogames, toys,
(original series) fiction/adventure/action TV series, books
Lara Croft–Tomb Raider Viacom Computer Collector’s box Action/fantasy/adventure Toys, advertisment
game/sequel hook
Pirates of the Caribbean Disney — 3 DVD box Adventure/comedy/fantasy/ Videogames
action

Note. Generated by the authors using publicly available data from The Internet Movie Data Base (n.d.).

Table 4. Event Movie Profits

Combined Budget U.S. Profit Worldwide Profit

Movie Domestic Gross Oversea Gross (Estimated)a (Estimated)b (Estimated)

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King $377,027,325 $556,592,194 $144 million $44.5 million $415.4 million
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban $249,541,069 $584,500,642 $180 million –$55.2 million $214.9 million
Star Wars: Episode II–Attack of the Clones $310,676,740 $113,107,712 $140 million $15.3 million $184.7 million
Pirates of the Caribbean: … Black Pearl $305,413,918 $283,000,000 $180 million –$27.3 million $147.0 million
Spider-Man II $373,585,825 $151,518,000 $250 million –$63.2 million $142.0 million
The Matrix Revolutions $139,313,948 $348,500,000 $185 million –$115.3 million $27.5 million
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines $150,371,112 $741,861,654 $240 million –$164.8 million –$23.3 million
Hulk $132,177,234 $410,378,672 $172 million –$105.9 million –$49.4 million
Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life $65,660,196 $285,674,263 $130 million –$97.2 million –$51.7 million
King Arthur $51,882,244 $540,250,000 $160 million –$134.1 million –$58.3 million

Note. Calculated using publicly available data from Box Office Mojo (n.d.).
aFor the calculation of the combined budget, marketing and production budgets were combined. bThe profit of a given film is calculated by

one half of its gross revenues minus its production and marketing budget. This model by no means gives an exact account of the profit of a film;
however, as De Vany and Walls (1999) argued, it can only be used as an approximation for a film’s performance.

Textual Implications In recent years, a postmodern aesthetic has become the

With a globalwide release and ambition to sell the film in
the home entertainment and television market, an event
movie has to be as appealing to a 13-year-old American ado-
lescent seeking a thrill in the cinema as to a 40-year-old Pol-
ish construction worker who watches the film on DVD with
his wife and kids. To be popular, event movies must reach
wide and diverse audiences. Therefore the film itself must be
a so-called open text, which allows several (sub) cultures to
generate meaning from it (Fiske, 1987). The event movie as
open text must be easy to understand and at the same time
allow different reading positions. An excess of meanings is
an essential precondition for a film’s universal appeal.
central element for films to open themselves up to individ-
ual audience groups and allow them to generate meaning
and enjoyment from them (Allen, 1999). One instrument
for generating this postmodern, polysemic appeal is a re-
jection of reality-based genres. Instead, postmodern event
movies take on fantastic or futuristic themes. Conjuring up
exotic worlds and plots that take place in the future or in a
past that never existed, event movies do not represent real-
ity but rather construct it. Borrowing an analytic term
from Baudrillard (1994), event movies have become a
simulacrum, the simulation of a reality that does not exist.
The use of nonreality based genres such as action, sci-
ence fiction, or fantasy can be seen as an indicator of the

88 S. Jöckel and T. Döbler

textual component of the event movie. With its strong em-
phasis on visual effects the high concept opens the door for
further postmodern elements to enter the film’s narrative.
A one after the other succession of spectacles has become a
substitute for the plot (Lash, 1990). However, elements of
classic narrative such as character-driven drama are still in
use in postmodern event movies (Buckland, 1998). The
postmodern bricolage (mix) of classic narration and mon-
tage-based spectacle has become a common element of the
event movie (King, 2000; Tusker, 1993). Different elements
of genre and style are mixed (King, 2002). Through pastiche
and bricolage (Jameson, 1984), postmodern event movies
reconfigure conventions of established genres to create
films with a universal appeal (King, 2002). These textual
characteristics allow the event movie to fully reach its po-
tential in attracting different audience groups. Further-
more, this textual openness makes it possible to turn a
movie into a successful franchise.
For high-concept marketing to be successful, the event
movie can no longer be simple fiction; it has to become a
real-life event. With the huge impact of ongoing market-
ing and merchandising the constructed reality of an event
movie is no longer restricted to the realm of motion pic-
tures. Instead it mingles with everyday life experiences. It
accompanies us the whole day through: at the breakfast
table (Star Wars logo on a cornflake box), at the office (a
colleague’s Shrek mobile ringtone), and at bedtime (The
Lord of the Rings bed sheets). The “story” is not only told in
the presold property and the films, it is also reworked and
reestablished in merchandising products ranging from
cups and t-shirts to sophisticated videogames.3
Summary
To understand a film’s performance in the age of verti-
cally and horizontally integrated TNMCs the overall mar-
keting strategy of the TNMC, whose intellectual property
the film has become, needs to be scrutinized. The event
movie strategy has been identified as an important instru-
ment in safeguarding a film against failure.
An event movie can often be identified by its above-aver-
age production and marketing budget. It takes full advan-
tage of high-concept marketing as it is based on a
presold-property (and potential sequel) strategy to enter
the consciousness of the audience even before the film is
going to be released. The film’s content is streamlined to fit
into an intensive marketing campaign. Because of the in-
creased investment that is necessary to produce, market,
and distribute an event movie, these films have to appeal to
audiences worldwide. Therefore the event movie strategy
relies on the film’s cultural capability to generate meaning
for diverse audience groups. Only when the film is success-
fully integrated into people’s everyday lives the efforts of
high-concept marketing and globalwide release will pay
Filmed Entertainment
off. The textual openness of an event movie has a direct in-
fluence on whether or not a film and the related
merchandise will be accepted and consumed by different
(sub) cultures at different stages of the value chain. With
the increasing importance of these new markets specified
both by region (Asia, Eastern Europe) and media (DVD, com-
puter-, and videogames), new business models for TNMCs
have been designed. The standard profit window model for
the film market has been adjusted for these new develop-
ments. The value chain is transformed into a value cycle,
and new models of price discrimination are introduced.
Event movies provide content that can be exploited in the
different divisions of a TNMC.
Discussion
The aim of this article was to describe the basic premises of
the event movie strategy as an important instrument for
the marketing of films by TNMCs. The focus of this article
has been on a general description of the event movie strat-
egy and its significance for TNMCs. Still, it can be assumed
that the importance of the event movie strategy will differ
for each TNMC. Time Warner seems to be the conglomerate
with the greatest affinity to the event movie strategy. Three
films and the franchises that go along with them, account-
ing for box office revenues of more than $7 billion, are re-
lated to the Time Warner Corporation (The Lord of the Rings,
Harry Potter, Matrix). Time Warner’s affinity to the event
movie concept can be partly explained by the company’s di-
versified structure (Chan-Olmsted & Chang, 2003; Gomery,
2000; Sjurts, 2002). Time Warner has a large interest in gen-
erating content for its various channels. However, other
conglomerates such as Sony have also started to recognize
the potential for successful event movie franchises. The U.S.
version of Sony’s new PlayStation® Portable gaming con-
sole is accompanied by a memory disk version of Spider-Man
2 (Raimi, 2004), installing a new profit window for the origi-
nal event movie. Sony’s acquisition of MGM is too recent to
have distinct effects on the company’s event movie policy,
but it can be expected that new franchises will be devel-
oped. Disney on the other hand can be seen as a company
whose success depends on animated features. Originally
these films were aimed at young audiences, but recent ani-
mated features such as Finding Nemo (Stanton, 2003) and The
Incredibles (Bird, 2004) show the potential to attract
grown-up audiences as well. The success of other event
movies from its Touchstone subsidiary such as Armageddon
(Bay, 1998) or King Arthur (Fuqua, 2004) varied. Other con-
glomerates employed the event movie strategy for different
reasons. Vivendi/NBC Universal, for example, used the re-
lease of Van Helsing (Summers, 2004) to promote backlist
DVD titles for its classic horror series. Viacom (Paramount)
is built on the success of the Star Trek franchise. As for News
Corp. (20th Century Fox), “borderline” event movies such
89
as Daredevil (Johnson, 2003) or Elektra (Bowman, 2005) did
not perform as well as expected but with X-Men the corpora-
tion still benefits from a rather successful event movie fran-
chise. However, one of the most successful event movie sa-
gas, Star Wars, is only distributed by 20th Century Fox. The
complete exploitation of the franchise is mainly in the
hands of George Lucas.
Each of these TNMCs has distinct ways to modify the
event movie strategy. Future research needs to account for
these variations. The event movie strategy of a TNMC
needs to be integrated within the company’s strategic po-
sition and organization. A comparison between Sony or
Time Warner and the more traditional corporations Dis-
ney and Fox, for example, could answer the question, to
what extent is the event movie strategy influenced by the
TNMC’s overall structure and strategy?
Analyzing the event movie from an economic and cul-
tural, textual perspective allows us to better understand
the underlying assumptions of the event movie strategy.
For further research on the strategy of TNMCs with regard
to the film market, it is therefore recommended to com-
bine econometric models with audience centered ap-
proaches that account for the different interpretations
audiences can take away from films. Combining eco-
nomic and cultural factors into future research can help
to generate models that will adequately predict the per-
formance of a film and will thus be a central instrument
for TNMCs to reduce the risk involved in film production.
Notes
1. One reason for the limited performance of econometric
models to predict a film’s success lies in the fact that a film’s
profit depends on the kind of contract that is laid out for a
given film (Cones, 1997; Vogel, 2001; Weinstein, 1998).
2. The average negative cost of a MPAA member film in 2004
was $63.6 million (MPAA, 2005). Thus, films with a budget,
which is considerably higher than the average production
budget, can be seen as “tent pole pictures,” or potential
event movies.
3. For more than 25 years the Star Wars saga, for example, has
been expanded on through many videogames, allowing the
story to develop and continue (Demaria & Wilson, 2004).
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