Tag: Entertainment

A Long Story Short: Short Films Are Trending Big Time!

Short Films are trending big time in India and other regions of the world.

The current rise of short films in India can be contributed to the following factors:

1. Digital Technologies:
The proliferation of affordable and reliable internet has created new opportunities for content consumption. The ‘mobile first’ generation is hungry for good content on their personal screens. The cheap internet has opened up the entire nation and regions for consuming short films – one does not need to visit a cinema. And short films are ideally suited for the personal screens and small time window.

2. Demand for Diverse & Innovative Content:
Young Generation is more eclectic in their choices. They are looking for new and diverse content. They are more experimental in nature and reward a good story regardless of the star cast. The young and impatient generation has a short attention span and they are look for instant gratification. Short films are “Any Time Movies”.

3. New Distribution Platforms:
Online Platforms like YouTube gave a big boost to short films. Today, there are numerous platforms including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar, Zee5, ErosNow etc. providing a great distribution reach to these movies. Humara Movies, Pocket Films, Terribly Tiny Tales, Alt-Balaji etc are dedicated to the short films.

Tata Sky has a dedicated Shorts channel which has more than 2000+ movies. Shorts TV is the global leader for short movies and it produces and distributes short movies.

In addition, there are large number of Film Festivals dedicated to the short movies.

4. Creative Freedom:
Film makers love the creative freedom provided by the medium of short movies. There is no big pressure of formula movies and and other commercial considerations to bow to.

Film makers from across the nation and globe can bring their original stories. They do not need censor certificates for these movies – a big factor.

Short movies can be a launching platform for new makers. Existing players can use the platform to diversify their portfolio. Lot of big names have taken a leap in the world of short movies – Anurag Kashyap, Sujoy Ghosh, Neeraj Ghaywn, Jackie Shroff, Irrfan, Tapsee Pannu, Manoj Bajpayee, Radhika Apte.

5. Monetisation:
Short movies also provide strong monetisation opportunities for unique content. The monetisation opportunities can be: direct brand associations, sale to platforms, film festival reward money and online ad revenue shares. The revenues can be global. The Royal Stag Large Short Films is truly a unique model – which can be exported to the world.

Apart from the monetisation opportunities, film makers get a lot of Finanical support to get started. In US, film makers also get crowdfunding via Seed & Spark, Kickstarter, Indiegogo and other platforms.

The rise of short movies is a great development. Does it send warning signals to full feature films? Not really. Both short movies and full feature movies can co-exist. T20 and Test Cricket both co-exist. The short movies are actually inspiring full feature movies. The rise of content-driven cinema is a positive influence of short movies.

Short Film are the Haiku of the Cinema. Short Films are the Jamun Shots – small but they pack a strong punch. Short Films prove that when it comes to entertainment, size does not matter.

Short movies are an art form in itself – the movies are completing the circle as the motion picture started in form of short movies only!

Want a quick taste of short movies?
Check Anukul…

March 23, 2019
The Forces Behind The Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Star Wars – The Force Awakens is breaking records like a pack of cards. It is the fastest movie to reach USD 1 Billion mark and will be the top movie of all time. The movie is a box-office blockbuster that dwarfs every other movie franchise.

How did it happen?

1. Disney’s Smart Acquisition: Disney is an entertainment giant with a sharp strategy of picking a cool movie franchise and rejuvenating it. Disney paid $4 Billion for the acquisition of LucasFilm and started its redevelopment. Disney’s method is to acquire companies with franchise potential, set its strategic talent to make the acquisition work and power it with its marketing and distribution weight. Disney knows how to exploit the IP from the acquisitions – the magic has worked with its acquisitions of Pixar and Marvel. Disney will milk this further with “Star Wars” area at Disneyland.

2. Go Beyond The Creator/Founder: George Lucas is a visionary in every sense of the word. Creating Star Wars when limited technology and meagre resources existed is nothing but a stroke of genius. But Star Wars was stagnating in recent times. It required a passionate J J Abrahams to reinterpret and bring new glory to Star Wars. He understood the masterpiece of George Lucas and what made it work in the first place – maybe even bettering Lucas in some instances. Creator/Founder can sometimes be too close to her work and may not help the cause. Also, the creator needs to switch gears as required – every stage of organisation and movie franchise needs different skills. Hence J J Abraham nurtured the franchise in a professional manner and delivered a mass entertainment product.

3. Product Development: Star Wars – The Force Awakens has succeeded primarily due to the good content. No marketing can help a bad movie – especially in these days of social media and word of mouth power. Even Nostalgia can take you so far – else all other Star Wars movie would have been equally big hits. The chief victory of J J Abrahams and team was to stick to the core USP of Star Wars. They knew what the fans wanted, they knew what made sense, they avoided distraction and stayed loyal to the identified market segment. They stuck to the formula of the original in all aspects. Though some fans expressed disappointment with the movie lack of imagination and innovation and dull length, the overall product play worked.

4. Innovative Marketing: Trust Disney to ensure marketing genius. They leveraged Nostalgia to maximum effect – ensuring that all adults re-live their childhood stories. Disney is expanding its base beyond the children and this was a master-stroke. They also released Star Wars merchandise ahead of time – to create more ambassadors. They carefully planted stories of return from misguided prequels thereby raising expectations of the new movie. The usual marketing template of promotional tie-ups, clothing, games etc. was effectively leveraged as well.

5. Distribution: The distribution strength of Disney ensured a global release on a large scale. Christmas timing ensured that no one could not escape Star Wars. It brought lot of new audience to cinema. So when you have a great product, go all aggressive.

The Force Is On….

December 28, 2015
How Taylor Swift Is Shaking Off The Music Entertainment Business?

Is Taylor Swift The New Challenger For Indra Nooyi, Sheryl Sandberg, Mary Barra, Marissa Mayer? Taylor Swift Is A Clever Businesswoman For Sure!

Her website defines her position and ambition very clearly: “She is, quite simply, a global superstar.” And rightfully so !

Taylor Swift is everywhere. She is on a roll. She is checking all the boxes:
1. Sweeping Music Awards
2. Record Fan Base – 50 Million Plus Followers on Instagram, 1 Billion Plus Views for “Shake It Off”
3. On Covers of Time, Forbes & Fortune. On All The Lists (Including Fortune’s Most Powerful Women List – Youngest Woman @ 25)
4. Rising Brand Equity – Earning A Million Dollar A Day

So how did Taylor Swift “Shake It Off”? No Rocket Science, I guess.

1. Clear Goals: She always wanted to be a Music Diva. She executed her childhood dream and worked her way up.
2. Focus: She is a very focused professional. She takes her job seriously. She wrote her lyrics, sang and earned fans by performing at events, festivals, shows. She promoted her each album with religious sincerity. She has made albums every two years and is focused on her main line of business.
3. Image Management: She has created a distinct image for herself. She is a REAL star. She is Genuine and has made the right choices. She is in the media for usually all the right reasons. She has gone beyond the stereotype image of a music star as just a Glam Girl, Bad Girl etc. The way she handled Kanye West controversy in 2009 showed her maturity and her intent for staying for the long run. She has leveraged Social Media successfully and created a strong following. She directly engages with her fans in her unique style and this has created a genuine fan connect and loyalty.
4. Savvy Businesswoman: She means business. And she is willing to take a stand. Ask Apple ! She took on Apple Music for the way it compensated the musicians during the Apple Music Trial period. She took on Spotify as well and refused to put her music on Spotify claiming that they did not compensate artists properly. She has made strong product endorsement deals and handle various negotiations smartly. (She has strong economics DNA for sure. Her father is a VP at Merrill Lynch and her mother was in Mutual Fund marketing).
5. Perfect Philanthropist: No doubt, Taylor Swift is phenomenal as an artist. “Shake It Off” did not get more than 1 Billion plus views or 1984 tour was not a success without any reason. But she is not content with her main day job. She has leveraged the “Taylor Swift” power for pushing philanthropic initiatives that matter. Whether is children education, children health, LGBT or natural disasters, she supports the right organisations. Michelle Obama presented Swift with The Big Help Award for her “dedication to helping others” and “inspiring others through action”. And today’s consumer loves a humane artist, not a wild brat!

Her success has lessons for individuals and businesses – clear goals, focus, execution, perception management, social media best practices, brand values.

So far so good. But Taylor Swift is no regular music diva. She is not going to be sitting on her laurels. As an artist who speaks passionately about being reborn daily, she is pushing the envelope for the music entertainment industry. And she never says never. Keep watching Taylor Swift!

Image Courtesy: Taylor Swift Official Website

Meanwhile, Enjoy my favorite Taylor Swift song:

October 24, 2015