2020 was obviously a VERY DIFFERENT year when it came to film, with many releases skipping their theatrical run, choosing a hybrid drive-in/virtual event approach, or just heading straight to a streaming release. As always, Team Smarthouse kept their eye on how these films were being marketed, and were wowed by the poster campaigns, innovative ideas, and other marketing bits that people and agencies came up with!

Here’s a look at what stuck out to us:

SPACESHIP EARTH

Expanding the power of virtual cinema, NEON launched an experimental release strategy for much buzzed-about documentary SPACESHIP EARTH -- which included a digital release, limited public screenings, and partnerships with businesses and organizations which would split the proceeds. EARTH was made available on Hulu, iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, FandangoNow, Vudu, DIRECTV and DISH, and screened at drive-ins plus some special pop-up city-scape projections, which allowed for adherence to social distancing guidelines. Viewers could also choose to support partners Atlas Obscura, Earth Day Network, The Explorers Club, Talcot Mountain Science Center and more by renting the film through them, which included digital Q&As with the filmmakers and subjects as an incentive. In pivoting from a traditional theater release, they basically tried EVERY available option and it paid off.

BIRDS OF PREY (AND THE FANTASTICAL EMANCIPATION OF HARLEY QUINN)

The main poster for BIRDS OF PREY (see our gallery below) is a gorgeous close-up of Harley surrounded by the films’ other characters and filled with gorgeous pops of color that fit the tone of the film perfectly. That said, we’re a little more in love with these character posters, which frame each woman as a classically-painted Greek Goddess.

FANTASTIC FUNGI

This niche documentary took social media by storm via a grassroots organizing campaign. FUNGI didn’t just partner with experts in the mycelium movement, it also created its own! Producers worked with trusted leaders and gathered together a close-knit online community of mycelium believers to put on screening events, talks and panels, and a community recipe based that turned into a cookbook. They also established “The 7 Pillars” of mycelium, and started “Fungi Day,” a virtual global gathering, and lobbied for, and helped pass, several related health therapy initiatives. It’s an impressive study of how to micro-target your audience and get social engagement that converts viewers to true believers who help spread the word.

MOTHERLOAD

Speaking of bringing a community together, cargo-bike documentary MOTHERLOAD activated bike clubs all over the country to host screenings of the film, which gave those clubs something to energize their riders (who could not meet for group rides) while hitting their target audience. They also created a killer hashtag: #BikethePandemic - and crowdsourced a short film created by social media footage provided by the bicyclists who used it!

PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN

The trailers, posters (see below), and social media for Emerald Fennel’s PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN were all on point, but we particularly loved this added gem, sent from the film’s publicity team to critics as a way of discouraging any spoilers in their reviews. Having the film’s main character write YOU a personal note is both fun and innovative.

THE GREEN KNIGHT (Releasing in 2021)

As discussed before, A24 nails its marketing efforts every time, but they really cranked the campaign for fantasy film THE GREEN KNIGHT up to 11 by releasing its own Dungeons & Dragons’ style game based on the story of the film! The original tabletop game includes: A Quest For Honor Starter Set includes: Game Master's Guide (with Rules of Play, Official Encounters, and A24 Bonus Quests), Map of the Realm, 5 character sheets, and 20-sided die.

HOST

The marketing for HOST didn’t need any additional frills, because the concept of the film sells itself! Really the thing Smarthouse admires most about HOST is its Director’s ingenuity in conceptualizing the story. While on a Zoom call with friends, Rob Savage orchestrated a prank in which he pretended to hear noises in his attic and investigated, finding a terrifying zombie and leaving everyone wondering if he was okay. After the video of his prank went viral, Rob decided to write a feature film based on the idea. The cast (many of which were on the original prank Zoom call) ended up doing their own make-up, lighting, filming -- and even practical effects -- while Rob directed them remotely from his living room. The result is a terrifying one-hour horror film that made us all rethink meetings.

One last brilliant marketing move we saw this week: ever hear of a film festival for one? Göteborg Film Festival added a VERY INTERESTING component to their online fest -- “The Isolated Cinema” is described as “One solitary film enthusiast will experience total isolation from the outside world. No phone, no family, no friends. Just you, the sea and the festival’s film programme with 60 film premieres. For seven days.” Interested film fans can apply on the GFF website!

And you know Team Smarthouse loves a GOOD movie poster! Here’s a roundup of some additional 2020 posters we loved:

OUR FAVORITE FILM MARKETING IN 2020