Paper Planes: Helping A Little Aussie Film Fly
Award Category
Best Strategic Launch Campaign
Agency
OMD
Client
Roadshow
Sponsor
Objectives
OMD’s task was to promote the launch of Australian kids’ film Paper Planes in the incredibly competitive summer film market while it was up against DreamWorks’ Penguins of Madagascar and Disney’s Big Hero 6.
Campaign
The strategy was to create connection through the act of making paper planes, making it about families. OMD worked with Network 10 to integrate paper plane-themed content into nationally televised Big Bash cricket. Interstitials showed cricket heroes competing in paper plan competitions, directing viewers to vote online to win a holiday. The partnership culminated in a major televised cricket match the night before the film’s release, with families invited onto the ground to throw planes in front of hundreds of thousands of fans. Two ‘paper plane pilots’ were recruited as ambassadors, one of whom ranked third in Red Bull’s Paper Plane World Championships. Families were encouraged to make paper planes and bring them to the cinema to let fly during screenings. Paper plane kits were handed out in cinema foyers, retail points and at swimming pools. Long-form content made for Nickelodeon (cut into a 30-second parent-targeted piece for other channels) showed children making paper planes, taking them to the cinema and reviewing the film. Parenting blog Essential Kids urged parents to take kids to see the film. This content was seeded on Facebook. A search campaign also focused on keywords around holiday activities for kids, sending families to a mobile-led site with interactive paper plane games and how-to videos.
Results
The week before release of Paper Planes, there was 37% prompted awareness and more than double the awareness of every other Australian film released by Roadshow in 2014. It opened as the #1 film in Australia, ahead of its biggest rivals. The film smashed the $5 million box office target by doubling it, reaching just shy of $10 million. Paper Planes has become one of the top five most successful Australian family films of all time.
Judges Comments
The strategy transcended the challenging landscape and an animation-bias for kid’s movies. A strategic focus on participation truly captured the curiosity & imagination amongst kids of all ages!
