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ATTENTION FILMMAKERS: THINKING ABOUT PRODUCT PLACEMENT DOLLARS? READ THIS:
The Precarious Path to Product Placement
By Rachel Galvin
(This article was originally written a few years ago for SoFla Magazine and was never published since the magazine went under before printing that particular issue.)
Today’s television viewer loves to forward through commercials…because they can. Moviegoers step out for popcorn while ads run. This spells bad news for advertisers hoping to cash in.
But luck has turned around of late with the influx of Product Placement. What began with products like ET’s Reese’s Pieces has grown into a concept so embedded that it is virtually unrecognizable. Other times, it is so blatant it is ridiculous, such as American Idol’s Coca Cola room teeming with Coca Cola paraphernalia and Coca Cola cups prominently displayed on the judges’ table.
Is utilizing Product Placement a sell-out? Not necessarily. Budding filmmakers can turn this phenomenon into a win-win for everyone involved.
The problem filmmakers run into is how to go about getting Product Placement. There are plenty of articles about the fact that it exists but very little about how to get it. It seems to come down to just asking.
But the way you ask makes all the difference, according to local independent filmmaker Chris Mitchell, who has been able to access funds for his upcoming picture “Devil’s Own Luck” through Product Placement. “Ask ‘Who do I speak with about Product Placement. I am making a movie’ not ‘Hey, I’m making a film…You have to believe you are a producer first,” advised Mitchell.
He suggests searching out products that need advertising or who lack advertising venues. Look at Winn Dixie. They made their own self-titled movie to advertise themselves! Because big names like Coke and Pepsi often have the big wigs knocking at their door, choose an off-brand first. Once you have them on board, hit up the others. Then you can say, ‘Hey, I have X potato chips on board. Pepsi, would you, too, like to be a part of my movie?’
Before approaching a company, there are some steps that need to be in place first. For example, if you are planning on having distribution, you need to be a company and be insured. That means putting together incorporation papers--- aspects probably not considered by the average filmmaker looking for easy money. Filmmakers cannot even take money unless they are actually a company.
Also don’t count your money until they’ve given over the check signed, sealed and delivered. Look at Barak Epstein from “Prison a Go Go.” He had Coca Cola for his campy film; but when they saw the direction it was turning, they pulled funds half way though, leaving him to go to Jolt cola instead and having to dub over or blur out the mentions of Coca Cola throughout the film.
Of course, it was all a joke, according to Epstein. That never happened. “We thought it would be funny. It was purposely a plot point,” he laughed. But that doesn’t mean it couldn’t happen… so let that be a warning to you. “We always just had Jolt,” he added.
The compensation he received for putting Jolt in his film? “We got a case of Jolt,” he continued. According to a recent article in the Hollywood Reporter: “Five of the leading Product Placement agencies estimate that 70%-95% of their placements are still barter deals only.”
Even for the biggest movies, getting products rather than money for Product Placement may be easier. Industry guru and Hollywood producer, David Basulto, found out about this during his film “Love and Action in Chicago” starring Kathleen Turner. Being queen of the screen, she was used to high-class wardrobe. Luckily, he was able to secure it by simply asking ESCADA. They shut down the store and allowed her to shop, giving them a marketing-dream photo op and giving him $20,000 in clothes for the raspy-voiced sex kitten.
During ‘Wish You Were Dead’ with Cary Elwes, “Cary needed a car so BMW Canada gave us a roadster to use,” he said. “Plus we got tons of any kind of food. Getting booze, cigarettes, water, soda—that stuff is easy.”
In his experience, advertising companies or the business themselves want to see the whole script. “You might think ‘I’ll just send them the pages that I want placement on’ but they want to see the whole thing. For example, if you are trying to get Gatorade and the man is simply drinking it during those pages but later in the script, he is killing someone because he drank it, they don’t want that,” he laughed. He added that these companies “want a bang for their buck. Big companies want to know the distribution and the stars included—the bigger the stars, the more stuff you can get.”
“If you have no plans for distribution, it is going to be difficult,” said expert Jeff Greenfeld, Executive Vice President of 1st Approach, a Boston advertising agency. “The biggest misconception is that what matters is how many people are going to see the film. Look at ‘Sideways.’ Sales went up 25% but people would have laughed beforehand at the movie if approached. They have no track record. Now if they were to make a ‘Sideways 2,’ they would have plenty of people jump on board. In the advertising world, they are very disconnected from the buzz in the film world.”
Despite the naysayers, it doesn’t hurt to ask. “Pull out a yellow pages,” suggested Mitchell. “But don’t just rely on Product Placement money. Be prepared to haggle. If they only want to give you $100, take it. Them being in your movie will add quality to your film. Then when it becomes a Blockbuster, they will want you to be a part of their advertising…then you will have the leverage. They will bend over backwards for you and you can renegotiate.”
Whether a newbie or a veteran in the film world, the path to Product Placement, it seems, begins with doing your homework. Good luck!
By Rachel Galvin
(This article was originally written a few years ago for SoFla Magazine and was never published since the magazine went under before printing that particular issue.)
Today’s television viewer loves to forward through commercials…because they can. Moviegoers step out for popcorn while ads run. This spells bad news for advertisers hoping to cash in.
But luck has turned around of late with the influx of Product Placement. What began with products like ET’s Reese’s Pieces has grown into a concept so embedded that it is virtually unrecognizable. Other times, it is so blatant it is ridiculous, such as American Idol’s Coca Cola room teeming with Coca Cola paraphernalia and Coca Cola cups prominently displayed on the judges’ table.
Is utilizing Product Placement a sell-out? Not necessarily. Budding filmmakers can turn this phenomenon into a win-win for everyone involved.
The problem filmmakers run into is how to go about getting Product Placement. There are plenty of articles about the fact that it exists but very little about how to get it. It seems to come down to just asking.
But the way you ask makes all the difference, according to local independent filmmaker Chris Mitchell, who has been able to access funds for his upcoming picture “Devil’s Own Luck” through Product Placement. “Ask ‘Who do I speak with about Product Placement. I am making a movie’ not ‘Hey, I’m making a film…You have to believe you are a producer first,” advised Mitchell.
He suggests searching out products that need advertising or who lack advertising venues. Look at Winn Dixie. They made their own self-titled movie to advertise themselves! Because big names like Coke and Pepsi often have the big wigs knocking at their door, choose an off-brand first. Once you have them on board, hit up the others. Then you can say, ‘Hey, I have X potato chips on board. Pepsi, would you, too, like to be a part of my movie?’
Before approaching a company, there are some steps that need to be in place first. For example, if you are planning on having distribution, you need to be a company and be insured. That means putting together incorporation papers--- aspects probably not considered by the average filmmaker looking for easy money. Filmmakers cannot even take money unless they are actually a company.
Also don’t count your money until they’ve given over the check signed, sealed and delivered. Look at Barak Epstein from “Prison a Go Go.” He had Coca Cola for his campy film; but when they saw the direction it was turning, they pulled funds half way though, leaving him to go to Jolt cola instead and having to dub over or blur out the mentions of Coca Cola throughout the film.
Of course, it was all a joke, according to Epstein. That never happened. “We thought it would be funny. It was purposely a plot point,” he laughed. But that doesn’t mean it couldn’t happen… so let that be a warning to you. “We always just had Jolt,” he added.
The compensation he received for putting Jolt in his film? “We got a case of Jolt,” he continued. According to a recent article in the Hollywood Reporter: “Five of the leading Product Placement agencies estimate that 70%-95% of their placements are still barter deals only.”
Even for the biggest movies, getting products rather than money for Product Placement may be easier. Industry guru and Hollywood producer, David Basulto, found out about this during his film “Love and Action in Chicago” starring Kathleen Turner. Being queen of the screen, she was used to high-class wardrobe. Luckily, he was able to secure it by simply asking ESCADA. They shut down the store and allowed her to shop, giving them a marketing-dream photo op and giving him $20,000 in clothes for the raspy-voiced sex kitten.
During ‘Wish You Were Dead’ with Cary Elwes, “Cary needed a car so BMW Canada gave us a roadster to use,” he said. “Plus we got tons of any kind of food. Getting booze, cigarettes, water, soda—that stuff is easy.”
In his experience, advertising companies or the business themselves want to see the whole script. “You might think ‘I’ll just send them the pages that I want placement on’ but they want to see the whole thing. For example, if you are trying to get Gatorade and the man is simply drinking it during those pages but later in the script, he is killing someone because he drank it, they don’t want that,” he laughed. He added that these companies “want a bang for their buck. Big companies want to know the distribution and the stars included—the bigger the stars, the more stuff you can get.”
“If you have no plans for distribution, it is going to be difficult,” said expert Jeff Greenfeld, Executive Vice President of 1st Approach, a Boston advertising agency. “The biggest misconception is that what matters is how many people are going to see the film. Look at ‘Sideways.’ Sales went up 25% but people would have laughed beforehand at the movie if approached. They have no track record. Now if they were to make a ‘Sideways 2,’ they would have plenty of people jump on board. In the advertising world, they are very disconnected from the buzz in the film world.”
Despite the naysayers, it doesn’t hurt to ask. “Pull out a yellow pages,” suggested Mitchell. “But don’t just rely on Product Placement money. Be prepared to haggle. If they only want to give you $100, take it. Them being in your movie will add quality to your film. Then when it becomes a Blockbuster, they will want you to be a part of their advertising…then you will have the leverage. They will bend over backwards for you and you can renegotiate.”
Whether a newbie or a veteran in the film world, the path to Product Placement, it seems, begins with doing your homework. Good luck!
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