Posted on 07/29/2011 8:37:40 PM PDT by RonDog
...Justin's reaction is significant. I think the Justins of this country are the most important targets of The Undefeated.There are confused and uninformed moderates who hear some vague buzz that Sarah is radical, stupid, and whiny.
Since they aren't political junkies, they have no facts to counter these charges and they're just as happy to believe them as to question them.
In fact, it's not important that large numbers of liberals or confused moderates watch The Undefeated; it's more important that the weak-tea Republicans who do watch it and who currently dismiss Sarah as having "too many negatives" will see it and begin to reluctantly reverse the buzz.
The Undefeated, to me, is about reversing the buzz.
And if (please God, WHEN) Sarah announces, a lot of people will watch in On Demand or on DVD to see what she's all about, and the buzz will become a roar that will drown out the Palin-hatred.
bump.
I would have loved to have seen this on a large screen in a filled with a mix of supporters and doubters. I would love to be standing and cheering at the end.
I hope it makes it to a few theaters in some NE locations before it goes to PPV.
yep.
And if (please God, WHEN) Sarah announces, a lot of people will watch it On Demand or on DVD......which is a good thing, because the folks marketing this amazing film certainly seem to have BUNGLED their "limited theatrical release" strategy on the BIG SCREEN.
From my frustrated rants about the DISMAL results so far, on THIS thread:
Friendly Reminder: "The Undefeated" opens today in SLC, Charleston, Cincinnati and Columbus-- snip --
As of this morning, "The Undefeated" is currently playing in a GRAND TOTAL of four theaters -- nationwide.
Click here for the most current list:
theundefeated.cinedigm.com/tickets.htmlAs we feared, "The Undefeated" is NO LONGER SHOWING at the fourteen OTHER theaters
where it was originally introduced -- on 7/15, and 7/22. :(
-- snip --
The plan, apparently, was to spend VERY LITTLE MONEY on "traditional marketing" --
and instead depend on "social media" and "local networking."And THAT strategy has clearly NOT been very effective --
after an initial promising spike in ticket sales on opening night.
I would have loved to have seen this on a large screen in a [theater] filled with a mix of supporters and doubters.Bingo!I would love to be standing and cheering at the end.
That is STILL the best way to experience this extraordinary film, IMHO.Right now -- barring a MAJOR CHANGE in the current marketing strategy -- it appears that the only way for this to happen is for local "grassroots" organizations to "go rogue" -- and screen "bootleg" copies of the DVD in churches, masonic halls, etc. -- rather than inside the AMC theaters, as I had hoped.
You would have a hard time finding a filled theater, even during opening weekend the per screen average was 52 people.
The goal in a limited release is to pick and choose the cities the movie will show in in order to maximize it’s profits. As an example if somebody was making a movie about how wonderful gay parents were they might open the film in San Francisco and New York. After a limited release movie does well in the targeted cities the company releasing it can then go to other theaters and say, “This movie is making X amount of dollars per screen. You should show it too!”
That was the plan with The Undefeated. The marketing company picked fairly large market, fairly conservative cities to open in on the assumption that the film would do best there for an initial roll out. The problem is the movie tanked. Any way you slice it. It tanked.
What makes you think he picked that method? Maybe he was forced, because the theaters wouldn’t book it.
The major flaw in their theatrical release strategy so far (IMHO) has been in the TIMING of their new showings.
We had THREE WEEKS notice before the grand opening in Orange, CA.
And, we had roughly 250 people at the 5 pm show, and 300 (sold out!) at the 7 pm show.
We had THREE DAYS notice before the opening one week later in Ontario, CA — about 75 miles away.
And, we had roughly 10 people at the 6 pm show, and 20 at the 8 pm show.
Same movie. Similar part of the country. Similar demographics/political breakdown.
Hmmm. I wonder if there is any connection between ADVANCE NOTICE and ATTENDANCE. ;)
If they’re not going to ADVERTISE the damn things, they will have to give us MUCH MORE TIME — to get the word out through “non-traditional” channels.
Not from what I read.
What makes you think he picked that method?They were probably not FORCED by dastardly theater owners -- but perhaps they were INFLUENCED by the political timetable of a potential Labor Day announcement.Maybe he was forced, because the theaters wouldn’t book it.
I can see them sacrificing short-term THEATRICAL success for long-term POLITICAL results.
Getting the DVDs out in time for her big announcement is just about the **only** explanation for their otherwise "bone-headed" actions to date.
opened up as the 15th best politcal documentary is not tanking.
Thanks for the great post and story. Can’t wait to see this film.
Really, what does sold out mean to do and the need for another screening to provide for the overflow?
So what did you take away from viewing the documentary? Too many empty seats?
This was posted by a person named Kevin DuJan and it was posted at Hillbuzz, so I think it might be a good bet that Justin's "gal" is Kevin.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.