Adventures in Self-Releasing: Social Networking & Paranormal Activity

by Jeffrey Goodman | Published October 23, 2009

We’re five days into the online release of The Last Lullaby, and sales have been strong. But I’m always looking for other ways to spread the word. My recent efforts include posting on Facebook walls; I’m targeting affiliated groups with the most members. For instance, Sprague Grayden is in our movie and also has been on “24,” so I posted on the walls of the most popular 24 Facebook groups—things like that. I’ll let you know about other efforts as we move forward.

As I mentioned last week, we have special promotions for anyone who buys a DVD during its first month in release. To announce the winner, I plan on doing a live feed some way, somehow during the drawing. Any ideas of the best live feed to do? Or should I just post it on YouTube once the drawing is done?

This week the first major independent movie award nominations of the season came out: the Gotham Awards. I thought it was an unusually interesting year for nominations. I’m curious what you all thought?

This week I wanted to focus on Paranormal Activity and its phenomenal success so far. First off, I’ll go ahead and come clean: YEAH, I’M JEALOUS! They spent less than one percent than I did making the movie and have made 400 percent more than I have? (Well, let’s just say they’ve made a lot more money with their movie than I have.)

Okay, now that I’ve come clean, I want to focus on what Paranormal Activity’s success tells us. I have a few theories and would be curious to hear from you, if you have others to add:

1. It’s a 400 percent better movie than I made.
Obviously, I’m not objective on this one. But I’d have to guess—even if some would argue that it is a superior movie to The Last Lullaby—I don’t think even our most adamant haters would concede that it’s 400 percent better. And I’m sure many people would actually say it’s inferior to the movie we made.

So if that’s not it, then…

2. It’s a horror movie with a much more definable demographic than we have.
What I’ve discovered in this process is that probably no other genre has an audience that’s as unified and supportive as the horror movie genre. But there have been numerous horror movies in the last several years that have cost much more to make and have had much more money with which to market themselves. Yet, they haven’t performed like Paranormal Activity.

So that can’t be the only explanation either. If that’s not it then…

3. The marketing team behind Paranormal Activity is working with more money but also in a smarter way than the marketing teams behind most small movies.
I don’t know Paramount’s exact marketing budget for Paranormal Activity, but at this point they have to be spending at least several million dollars pumping the word out to the masses. But that’s only after they pushed the movie over the tipping point and knew that they would be compensated for their marketing dollars. Their extremely intelligent use of Eventful should make all of us stop and think about using a similar method on our next productions. And their use of Twitter (they’re asking all of their fans to “tweet your scream”) and throwing Paranormal Activity parties for the first 10 theaters that sell out their 12:01 a.m. showtime on October 23, 2009. As far as I’m concerned, this movie is a marketing class for all of us as we move forward.

Sure, you might have one percent of the marketing budget they had, but things like their Twitter campaign and this idea of throwing parties at select theaters, all of us could probably emulate. Take time to look at and study their Website; it’s the best I’ve seen as we enter this new era of independent moviemaking.

After living in Los Angeles for seven years, Jeffrey Goodman returned to his hometown of Shreveport, Louisiana to direct The Last Lullaby. Co-written by the creator of Road to Perdition, and starring Tom Sizemore and Sasha Alexander, The Last Lullaby was filmed entirely in and around Shreveport and financed by 48 local investors.

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COMMENTS | POST A COMMENT

Comment by Chris on 10/23/09 at 10:35 am

Interesting observations - learning a lot from your articles, thanks.

RE: “Their extremely intelligent use of Eventful should make all of us stop and think about using a similar method on our next productions.”

What is a Eventful and what’s the method they used?

Cheers,
Chris

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 10/23/09 at 11:12 am

Hey Chris,

Thanks so much for the kind words.  Here’s the website for Eventful:  http://eventful.com/

Eventful is a service that allows its users to create events and then for the general public to track and add to the number of attendees.  For instance, here’s what PA did:

They created a link with Eventful that said, “Bring Paranormal Activity to your city!” Then, if you click on the link, it asks for your country and city.  If enough people in a city demand PA, Paramount will open it there. 

Eventful has taken some of the unknown out of the distribution equation.  Because Paramount knows that they have a certain size audience in each of these cities that has requested the movie on Eventful.  Does that make sense?

All the best,

Jeffrey

Comment by Chris on 10/23/09 at 11:16 am

Thanks makes perfect sense, thanks Jeffrey.

Wow - on demand cinema, sort of. This could get interesting!

Cheers,
Chris

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 10/23/09 at 11:23 am

Hi Chris,

I like that.  Yeah in many ways that’s exactly what it is “on demand cinema”.  Kudos to them, I must say.

All the best,

Jeffrey

Comment by Mel Thompson on 10/23/09 at 3:34 pm

Hey Jeffrey,

Long time reader, first time poster.  Thanks for all the nuggets of information as you chronicle your filmmaking journey. 

I, like you, am stunned by the success of Paranormal Activity, especially considering my current feature film is at a micro-budget, much like PA’s.  So reading and hearing about the success of PA, which was made on a lesser budget than my project, is enough to discourage me, and breed envy. 

But it is, what it is:  lightning in the bottle.

However - and I want to encourage you - to stay true to who you are.  You (and I) will get there one day.  I’d rather have a slow, steady rise to the mountaintop, than a meteoric one. 

So don’t envy, but stay the course.  There’s a niche / demographic for everyone.

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 10/23/09 at 5:03 pm

Hi Mel,

Thanks so much for your kind words.  And I completely agree with you:  while there are lessons to be learned from PA’s success, at the same time we each have to be true to ourselves.  Good points and great advice.

I just joined the Facebook page for Captive Audience.  I encourage others to do the same. 

Thanks for the great words, Mel.  I hope you won’t be a stranger here.

All the best,

Jeffrey

Comment by Antoinette Taus on 10/26/09 at 5:00 am

You’ve cited great observations on your part.  Well, just be patient and be more aggressive on advertising your movie.  Who knows you might get more than what you actually expect, right? Just stick to what you guys already started and find more other ways to get more viewers.  I’ve seen your listed prizes from your previous post, all of it are very interesting.

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 10/26/09 at 7:08 am

Hi Antoinette,

Thank you so much for your comments.  I appreciate the kind words and will keep looking for ways to get the word out on LULLABY.  And if you ever have suggestions, I’m totally open. 

I hope that you’ll continue to follow along.

All the best,

Jeffrey

Comment by T. E. Sanders on 10/29/09 at 12:33 am

Yeah, when I heard PA was using the Demand It technique, I jumped on it. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before. I’d used that for music projects, but for some reason.... Anyway, it’s a great idea. Speaking of ideas, have you seen the stuff surrounding “The Age of Stupid,” or “Nasty Old People?”

Nasty Old People actually uploaded their film to piratebay and did the ‘pay what you think it’s worth’ angle (something else that works in the music world). There was even an ad at the top of the site replacing the ship that was there before. I think they have the right idea to get it out there for people to download. I know it’s frustrating to hear about a movie hitting theaters in select cities other than your own when you want to see it ‘right now.’ Some folx will just go download it illegally in that situation instead of waiting for those ancillary markets to catch up. Screw that man, put all the options on the table at once. Especially streaming somewhere, even if someone has to donate something to get the stream going. I’ve talked to people that download and I get the sense it’s not just about being free, it’s about convenience. That would explain why itunes works.

Age of Stupid is more about how they raised money to do the project in the first place. Google it and go to the ‘money’ page and you’ll see what I mean. I’m still trying to wrap my head around that one.

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 10/29/09 at 9:16 am

Hi T.E.,

Thanks so much for your post.  All GREAT examples of movies coming up with new ways to approach it all.

I hope that you’ll continue to follow here and bounce ideas around. 

All the best,

Jeffrey

Comment by T. E. Sanders on 10/29/09 at 9:21 pm

Did you hear that Boondock Saints II is using the Demand It now?

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 10/30/09 at 8:54 am

Hi T.E.,

I didn’t know that.  Smart of them. 

I also noticed that you were using Eventful.  How does it work?  Is it free to set up an account with them?

Thanks, T.E.

All the best,

Jeffrey

Comment by T. E. Sanders on 11/01/09 at 1:14 pm

It’s free—so far. You set it up like any social network machine with a profile etc. Then, add your project and grab a Demand It button. I just put that up recently and haven’t really seen much action. I wasn’t expecting much yet as we’re not even done with the film. Demand It won’t do much for you unless you work the buzz first—another thing of which we’re in the early stages. I wanted to get it up early to take advantage of any slow burn that might happen as it’s going to take awhile to shoot this film.

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 11/02/09 at 11:56 am

Hi T.E.,

That’s very interesting and great information.  I totally agree with you, it can only help to go ahead and set that up.  Keep us all posted! 

All the best,

Jeffrey

Comment by paul chau on 11/10/09 at 4:28 pm

Hey Jeffrey
I got the film and had a chance to watch it. Just wanted to say congrats. I really enjoyed it. There is a quiet strength in Sizemore’s character which I like and the film has a consistent tone that is reflective of a directing style so congrats. I hope more people get to see this film. Thanks

Paul

Comment by Lea on 11/11/09 at 5:01 am

This movie Paranormal Activity scares me to my every bone. Their marketing strategy was a huge success. We know that they’ve earned big bucks while spending only small amounts on making the movie.

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 11/11/09 at 10:21 am

Hi Paul,

Thanks so much for your very kind words.  I really appreciate your support, and you taking the time to check out LULLABY.  I just received SCALP and plan to watch it very, very soon.  I’m very much looking forward to it. 

Thanks, Paul.  Catch up with you very soon.

Jeffrey

Comment by 640-816 on 12/01/09 at 6:00 am

This movie doesn’t lend itself to a big, giant marketing campaign. This movie is an old-fashioned word-of-mouth movie,” said Rob Moore, Paramount vice chairman. “By and large, at today’s production budgets, it’s really hard to say, ‘All right, now we’re going to rely on the audience and their word of mouth to make it work.’ Not when you have tens of millions of dollars in production costs invested in the movie.” 1Y0-456 The studio has only a pittance invested in “Paranormal Activity.” Shot by San Diego-based writer-director Peli for a reported $15,000, the movie was acquired by former Paramount partner DreamWorks at 2008’s Slamdance Film Festival. Peli, an Israeli-born video game designer, E20-001 filmed the low-budget movie in his own San Diego home with minimal production values.

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 12/01/09 at 8:20 am

Hi 640-816,

Thanks so much for your comments.  I hope that you’ll continue to follow along here.

All the best,

Jeffrey

Comment by Mark on 12/26/09 at 1:22 pm

Paranormal Activity is an unique horror movie, like The Blair Witch. People believed the story

Comment by Scrapbook on 12/31/09 at 12:38 am

Good to see movies being made because it’s a good movie, not a marketing machine.

Comment by Graham Green on 1/11/10 at 3:38 pm

Here’s our attempt at viral marketing (150,000 hits so far) -

http://bit.ly/TorturerTeaser

What do you think?

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 1/11/10 at 6:26 pm

Hi Graham,

Thanks for commenting here.  150,000 hits is tremendous.  How were you able to create that level of awareness around the clip? 

Great work!

Jeffrey

Comment by Graham Green on 1/13/10 at 5:17 pm

Jeff -

Here was our basic strategy:

Make a video that is really shocking and disturbing (youtube actually kept pulling it down, we had to post it 4 times.  Funny is better way to go, but we were promoting a political thriller/horror/war movie).

Then we sent it out to everyone on our email lists and asked them to forward it.

Then we signed up for every social media site and promoted it (Like StumbleUpon, Digg, Delicious, etc.)

Then we posted it to a number of sites using tubemogul.com (this is a great site that lets you upload to more than one video site at a time - this does not really increase your youtube hit count, however)

Next, we are about to send out a viral email using mailchimp with a link to the video.

I include a long signature in my emails with a link like this:

Shameless Self Promotion Signature:

“Y’all in the mood for some war-horror after Tarantino’s INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS? Well have a look at Graham Green’s debut feature THE TORTURER.” - JoBlo Movie Network

“A Breathtaking Psychological Thriller!” Emmy Award Winning Entertainment Reporter Kirk Montgomery, KUSA-TV, NBC Denver

TEASER Trailer (DO NOT WATCH if you do not want to see something really, TRULY scary):  http://bit.ly/TorturerTeaser

Also, find every place that allows you to post a video and post you video there.

Post links in comment sections at blogs like the ones above (they call this link-dropping - do it a lot!)

The other thing to keep in mind is market to your target audience, that slim section of people who will promote you film for you, rather than to everyone like you can with a large budget.

I’m sure we’ve done some other stuff too, i just can’t think of it now....

Anyone have any other ideas????

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 1/14/10 at 8:01 am

Hi Graham,

Wow, this is all excellent.  One question, how do you tangibly capitalize on all of this attention around the clip?  In other words, how do you convince that same person to go from watching your clip to buying your movie?

Thanks so much for sharing here.  This is all really helpful stuff.

Jeffrey

Comment by Graham Green on 1/18/10 at 6:53 pm

Jeff,

I really don’t know…

The think is to make a lasting impression that people not only remember, but tell others about.

How to get people to pull the trigger, though, that’s a tough one.

g

PS - another good site to post your stuff is 4chan.org

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 1/19/10 at 8:10 am

Hi Graham,

That’s a great point, “The thing is to make a lasting impression that people not only remember, but tell others about.” I couldn’t agree more.

Thanks again for all the insight.  Please stop by anytime.

Jeffrey

Comment by nike dunk on 1/27/10 at 9:47 pm

I’ve just completed a feature film called The Impossible Murder, which has a budget of roughly $30,000 and was shot on HDV.
I tried releasing it in theaters here in India but it’s so damn expensive to market films here. So I decided to release the film on DVD directly, but even in that case, I’ll have to bear production costs and some marketing costs until payments come in. The internet is a no hope situation because people don’t buy off the internet in India.
Your blog is certainly inspirational. I wish I had read it before I set out to make my film.
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Comment by nike dunk on 1/27/10 at 9:49 pm

I’ve just completed a feature film called The Impossible Murder, which has a budget of roughly $30,000 and was shot on HDV.
I tried releasing it in theaters here in India but it’s so damn expensive to market films here. So I decided to release the film on DVD directly, but even in that case, I’ll have to bear production costs and some marketing costs until payments come in. The internet is a no hope situation because people don’t buy off the internet in India.
Your blog is certainly inspirational. I wish I had read it before I set out to make my film.
sareesh |[url=http://pittsburgh-steelers-football-jerseys.blogspot.com/]pittsburgh steelers Football Jerseys..Thats awesome~~~!

Comment by John De Vera on 1/29/10 at 2:01 am

I believe that the most important and crucial part of a movie’s success is the advertising.  That’s exactly the last phase of the process, promotion.  Since this is the hardest part, many people are using all possible ways to help their movie marketing, like with the use of the internet.

Comment by Valerie Rio on 1/31/10 at 10:02 am

Your idea of spreading the word via Facebook walls is a very good idea. Marketing or promoting a movie via internet always give positive results. Anyway, this movie scared me a lot that I had hard time sleeping alone at night in my apartment..LOL! but I love watching this kind of movie.

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 1/31/10 at 6:05 pm

Hi John,

I couldn’t agree more with your comments.  Thanks so much for posting here!  I hope that you’ll continue to follow along.

All the best,

Jeffrey

Comment by Jeffrey Goodman on 1/31/10 at 6:06 pm

Hi Valerie,

Thanks so much for your comments!  I really think Facebook has become an absolutely essential tool for independent movies. 

Thanks again.  I hope that you’ll continue to follow along.

All the best,

Jeffrey

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