A01 - Marketing Mix: The Debt

The Debt:

The Debt is a film directed by John Madden, produced by Marv Films and Pioneer Pictures. It was distributed by Miramax Films worldwide, as well as UPI, Focus Features, Alliance Films and Golden Village Pictures. The film took an estimated $20,000,000 to make, and it has taken $26,564,431 as of the 18th September. (IMDb) The film is a thriller that has a UK Certification of 15 and an American Certification of R. You would expect to see this film in a multiplex cinema such as Odeon, or Cineworld, rather than art house screenings. It will be released in the UK on the 30th September 2011, but it was released on the 31st August 2011. And it is aimed at a middle aged audience as there are links back to the war, and middle aged people may remember their parents talking about the war. If a teenager or young adult was watching this they may find it very confusing if they don't know a lot about the war.

'The espionage thriller beings in 1997, as shocking news reaches retired Mossad secret agents Rachel (Helen Mirren) and Stefan (Tom Wilkinson) about their former colleague David (Ciaran Hinds). All three have been venerated for decades by their country because of a mission they undertook back in 1966, when the trio (portrayed, respectively, by Jessica Chastain, Marton Csokas, and Sam Worthington) tracked down Nazi war criminal Vogel (Jesper Christensen) in East Berlin. At great risk, and at considerable person cost, the team's mission was accomplished - or was it? The suspense builds in and across two different time periods, with startling action and surprising revelations.' -Written by Focus Features (IMDb)


Trailer




This is the full theatrical trailer for, 'The Debt,' I have not been able to find any teaser trailers for the film, and I also haven't seen it advertised on TV.
Here the trailer begins with the rating of the film from the MPAA, as this is the American trailer. In the British trailer you would not see the rating until the end. The colour palette at the beginning is warm and show sunsets, and throughout the film the colour palette gets darker and darker as you get deeper into the film and the plot. A mix of slow motion, military aircraft and silhouettes as the next shot, keep you in suspense and carry out an enigma. The woman explaining their story now in the 21st Century then goes on to talk about the 3 main characters. Whilst this is happening a montage of each character is being played in time to the description of their characters. In this montage we see parts of them from now and also when they were younger in their first mission together. Flashes are used to put this together and to help show the difference in time. In the montage of the main female character 'Rachel,' is seen in the beginning with a plaster on her cheek and in the newer footage she has a scar. This is an enigma hat you know will be followed throughout the film. 

There is then a montage of World War 2 footage. We can tell that this is WW2 footage as there is a swastika in the top left corner. This helps us to understand what time zone the film is set in. We then see the 21st Century woman talking about the mission more, and we have knowledge of what era the film is set in, and that 'Rachel,' is part of MOSSAD (National Intelligence Agency of Israel).

The trailer features many conventions that are typical of a thriller film, for example, fast editing. Fast editing is used to make everything seem of a quicker pace. This gives the audience an impression that the film is full of action and mystery. This action and mystery is also portrayed by the use of different angles for shots, all separated with black flashes.

The trailer then goes on to a blue background with text about when the film is out, the first being, 'This Summer,' it then cuts to a different part of the film. Underneath the text are lines and squares that seem to be a reference to underground tunnels, train lines, or control points from the war.

It then goes onto say the names of the actors/actresses involved in the film, and also the film's slogan. There is then a brief moment where the footage goes back to its original speed, and it then it goes at a fast pace again and the film's title then fades up.

The music in the trailer is very slow to begin with and it then picks up with the speed of the video footage. There are voice overs in the trailer, which are actually the actors in the film, rather than a narrator. The typical sound effects of a thriller are used, for example heartbeats. Heartbeats are used to give a sense of tension and that someone is on the edge and nervous. Their blood pressure is racing and so should yours. It is a very stereotypical piece of music for a thriller.

Posters

The posters made for The Debt, vary according to the country that the film is being showed in. For example the British and the American posters. The British (Top Image) is very plain compared to the American poster (Bottom Image). American posters like to have a lot of information in them, and this poster includes a small image of where the film is set. The British poster simply has 2 images, a splash, the name of the film, release date, names of the actors/actresses, the names of the production team and the film's certification. The American poster has a different bottom image, this could easily give a different impression of what the genre is for the film, making it look like an action film, because of the clear view of the gun, rather than a thriller. It seems that American's prefer to have a busier poster rather than something quite traditional and plain.




Compared to the Glee posters, these are very mysterious, but simple as the Glee posters, are bold with a different character on each showing the 'L' sign with their hand and filling in the word Glee. The Glee posters are also simple, but because of their bold colour scheme it has more of an impact.

Example of a Glee Poster: 

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBKLOKXhUoHDoo2vOY5Cgw8ko9P_-QOsaDi4v-w5YV2HkW7JsSxAkU-Rrci3OdrptMiz2Dnoy81JQzmPM17gRI3wpCG4fjzSZPoe_GXZNNJJLeNDSxAGCs6yP_3yAE1fcIhTnbAj7WGj1F/s1600/vvallpaper.net_glee_Kurt_humer_chris_colfer.jpg

Website

The official website for The Debt is on the 'Focus Features,' site. There are sub sections to the website with an overview, story, videos, photos, news and reviews to name a few. There are also the 2 images on the American poster in the middle of the page, making it easier for the audience to figure out that they are on the right website. There are also ratings for the film at the top right hand corner, which is one of the first things that the audience sees. The Debt website is more sophisticated compared to the fun nature of Glee. The Glee website is covered in adverts and sponsors. As the show is sponsored by Cadbury's, 'Dairy Milk,' there is promotion for them all over the webpage. The Glee page is a lot bigger, and there are more links to buying the soundtracks for Glee and how they can follow them on Twitter and Facebook. The Debt also has links to Facebook, Blogger and Twitter, but it isn't as visible. There is also a part of the website that is dedicated to booking tickets and viewing showtimes in America. This is a great way to promote the film, as the audience can read up on the film and what it's about and then book the tickets straight away.

Social Media (Facebook, Twitter etc.)

The UK Facebook site for 'The Debt,' features photos, videos and links to interviews and reviews from other sites and newspapers. The page as of the 29th September 2011 only has 95 likes. The reason this might be so low is that the film is aimed at middle aged people, and usually middle aged people aren't on Facebook. The UK site has a lot less likes than the American site, which has 22,870 likes. This may be because the film was heavily publicised in America, and not many people actually know about the film in the UK. The American Facebook site is very much the same, but the articles are related to America not the UK. I haven't been able to find an official Twitter for the film, but The Debt has been used as a hash tag #thedebt along with the stars name #helenmirren #samworthington etc. 

Film Premiere 

The film premiere was covered by Hello! magazine, Metro newspaper, The Mirror to name a few. The newspapers and magazine's were only interested in what Helen Mirren looked like, rather than what the film is like. That would've been left to the film and entertainment section of the newspaper/magazine. At the film premiere's the focus is usually on what the actresses/actors are wearing.

Film Reviews

Many film magazines and newspapers have reviewed 'The Debt,' these are more in depth about the film compared to the film premiere. They talk about the cast, the plot and then give it an overall review, when the premiere is more focused on what the cast is wearing. As the reviews are in depth it gives you the chance is see if you want to go and see the film or not. This is why film critics are invited to the film premiere, so they can recommend the film for you. Radio 5 Live have also reviewed the film on 'Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo's Film Reviews' a popular show for the avid film viewer.

TV Appearances

To market and promote the film, the most recognised stars from the show take part in chat shows and other interviews. The stars ususally go on shows that represent the target audience of the film. For example Jessica Chastain went on BBC Breakfast to talk about the show, and Helen Mirren went on The Jonathon Ross Show on ITV. As you can see the more high end stars such as Helen Mirren, go on the more popular evening shows. Also Helen Mirren was on The Jonathon Ross Show as Ross's wife was one of the writers of the film. The producers, directors, and other members of the crew, often hold press conferences, and talk more to higher end tv shows and websites that may have film blogs. Usually people are more interested in seeing what the stars thought of the film.

Cinemas

Promotion is also given on cinema websites. Front running cinema's Odeon and Cineworld give short reviews of the film, and they also say that you should see it if you like different films. For example, Cineworld has said that you should watch 'The Debt,' if you enjoyed 'Munich,' 'Defiance,' and 'The Reader.'