In the wake of last week’s semi-surprise Best Picture nomination, the New York Times has rather an interesting piece on the sly marketing strategies that propelled “The Blind Side” to phenomenon status in the first place — tactics a Hollywood marketing consultant likens to “the regional marketings approach of the 50s, 60s and 70s.”
What I hadn’t realized is that, though the film was distributed by Warners, the film’s original production company, Alcon, maintained control over its marketing. (That Warners’ own similarly-themed Oscar baby, “Invictus,” was snubbed in favor of the same studio’s stepchild is a delicious irony.)
The strategy therefore began as early as the casting stage. Country music superstar Tim McGraw was brought in for added appeal to Southern audiences, but more canny was the casting of several well-known college football coaches:
Just like an old-fashioned publicity stunt, their presence helped “The Blind Side” connect with a male, sports-oriented audience that was roped in through blog reports and by screenings for college sports fans, some of them organized by the coaches themselves.
It’s a debate that never gets old regarding the music branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. When is it going to clean house regarding shady rules that seem to fly in the face of what the organization sets out to do each and every year: honor the best in cinematic achievement?