2021 Winner
BronzeBest in Experiential/Special Event/Stunts - Budget Under $100,000
Cineplex
"Projecting Hope"
Zulu Alpha Kilo
"Projecting Hope"
Zulu Alpha Kilo
When COVID-19 made the whole world come to a standstill, many people felt like a Hollywood disaster movie had become real. The entire world was urged to stay home, and people couldn’t have their usual experiences. Film companies postponed all major releases, and Cineplex, Canada’s largest cinema chain, was forced to close all of its 165 theatres. It was vitally important to maintain connections with Canadians during lockdown, so a campaign to increase engagement became the program goal.
As all of us navigated our way through COVID-19 restrictions, the so-called simple things like hugging family members, meeting friends for coffee, and even heading into the office were suddenly the things we craved. For many people, one of the experiences close to the top of that list was going to the movies. Interestingly, with plenty of opportunities to watch films and usage of streaming services up 100% in many markets, it was determined that what people were missing was the way they watched movies: as members of an audience, together in a large space, all part of a shared moment.
Their insight: We’re not just missing each other; we’re missing shared experiences. Their strategy: When people can’t come to the theatre, we’ll bring the theatre experience to them. Just like many of the best movies, their execution relied on a larger-than-life idea.
They wanted to deliver the power of movies on the big screen, which for many movie lovers is a differentiating part of Cineplex’s offering. In addition to finding a COVID-friendly way to present a film (outdoors, in a setting where people could maintain their distance but still feel connected), they had to find an environment that offered them a cinematic-scale “screen.”
They found their answer in the form of an enormous wall directly across from a high-rise apartment complex in downtown Toronto at the Bay and College intersection. Residents’ balconies became front-row seats, but still allowed people to be safely apart from each other.
On a quiet June Saturday night, they screened How to Train Your Dragon, introduced by the film’s star Jay Baruchel, at the apartment complex. Movie posters were put up in the building and surrounding area one week prior to promote the event. They invited residents to pre-order their genuine Cineplex popcorn and movie snacks through a special partnership with SkipTheDishes and donated a portion of each purchase to Food Banks Canada. Residents were provided with FM radios tuned to a frequency that ran the movie soundtrack. The film provided all the residents – adults and kids alike – exactly the kind of cinematic escape they needed to make them forget about COVID, at least for a while.
Projecting Hope pushed the boundaries of what out-of-home could deliver, turning it into an engagement experience and a content opportunity. There was nothing traditional about how Projecting Hope was executed. Relationships became the hub of the program’s success, from forging new relationships with building managers to communicate and engage with apartment dwellers to leveraging existing relationships to source a beloved movie, a celebrity to donate their time to movie lovers, and a delivery partner to make sure those movie lovers had their favourite snacks. They also used Cineplex’s own media assets, in a time of great financial difficulty, to not only promote the event, but to remind people of the power of the connectivity of cinema.
Social content was posted organically with more than 30,000 views in the first 72 hours. Campaign engagement and viewer objectives were exceeded in the first week: viewer index vs. norm: Facebook (352) and Instagram (395); engagement index vs. norm: Facebook (239), Instagram (240), and Twitter (260). Organic reach and engagement were double Cineplex content averages.
Media outlets and awards picked up and provided support for the initiative: Media in Canada said, “While the pandemic has exacerbated VOD trends, the theatre exhibition company wanted to remind Canadians of the magic of a movie experience“ while Ad Age said, “This theater chain brought the movies back to Canadians via their balconies.” The campaign was awarded two Golds at the 2020 Canadian Marketing Awards.
Most interestingly, the content kick-started a wave of anticipation, with many comments focusing on how excited people were about theatres reopening. That confirmed what movie lovers have always known: the best part of the big screen experience is sharing it with others.
As all of us navigated our way through COVID-19 restrictions, the so-called simple things like hugging family members, meeting friends for coffee, and even heading into the office were suddenly the things we craved. For many people, one of the experiences close to the top of that list was going to the movies. Interestingly, with plenty of opportunities to watch films and usage of streaming services up 100% in many markets, it was determined that what people were missing was the way they watched movies: as members of an audience, together in a large space, all part of a shared moment.
Their insight: We’re not just missing each other; we’re missing shared experiences. Their strategy: When people can’t come to the theatre, we’ll bring the theatre experience to them. Just like many of the best movies, their execution relied on a larger-than-life idea.
They wanted to deliver the power of movies on the big screen, which for many movie lovers is a differentiating part of Cineplex’s offering. In addition to finding a COVID-friendly way to present a film (outdoors, in a setting where people could maintain their distance but still feel connected), they had to find an environment that offered them a cinematic-scale “screen.”
They found their answer in the form of an enormous wall directly across from a high-rise apartment complex in downtown Toronto at the Bay and College intersection. Residents’ balconies became front-row seats, but still allowed people to be safely apart from each other.
On a quiet June Saturday night, they screened How to Train Your Dragon, introduced by the film’s star Jay Baruchel, at the apartment complex. Movie posters were put up in the building and surrounding area one week prior to promote the event. They invited residents to pre-order their genuine Cineplex popcorn and movie snacks through a special partnership with SkipTheDishes and donated a portion of each purchase to Food Banks Canada. Residents were provided with FM radios tuned to a frequency that ran the movie soundtrack. The film provided all the residents – adults and kids alike – exactly the kind of cinematic escape they needed to make them forget about COVID, at least for a while.
Projecting Hope pushed the boundaries of what out-of-home could deliver, turning it into an engagement experience and a content opportunity. There was nothing traditional about how Projecting Hope was executed. Relationships became the hub of the program’s success, from forging new relationships with building managers to communicate and engage with apartment dwellers to leveraging existing relationships to source a beloved movie, a celebrity to donate their time to movie lovers, and a delivery partner to make sure those movie lovers had their favourite snacks. They also used Cineplex’s own media assets, in a time of great financial difficulty, to not only promote the event, but to remind people of the power of the connectivity of cinema.
Social content was posted organically with more than 30,000 views in the first 72 hours. Campaign engagement and viewer objectives were exceeded in the first week: viewer index vs. norm: Facebook (352) and Instagram (395); engagement index vs. norm: Facebook (239), Instagram (240), and Twitter (260). Organic reach and engagement were double Cineplex content averages.
Media outlets and awards picked up and provided support for the initiative: Media in Canada said, “While the pandemic has exacerbated VOD trends, the theatre exhibition company wanted to remind Canadians of the magic of a movie experience“ while Ad Age said, “This theater chain brought the movies back to Canadians via their balconies.” The campaign was awarded two Golds at the 2020 Canadian Marketing Awards.
Most interestingly, the content kick-started a wave of anticipation, with many comments focusing on how excited people were about theatres reopening. That confirmed what movie lovers have always known: the best part of the big screen experience is sharing it with others.
Credits
Agency: Zulu Alpha KiloCreative Director: Zak Mroueh
Associate Creative Director/ Copywriter: Dan Cummings
Associate Creative Director/Art Director: Vic Bath
Agency Producer: Houng Ngui
Account Team: Mike Sutton, Matt Sinuita, Jenn Gaidola-Sobral
Planning Team: Heather Segal
Client: Cineplex
Clients: Dan McGrath, Sara Moore, Lauren Aitchison, Cathryn Levine
Production Company: Zulubot
Directors: Vic Bath, Dan Cummings
Executive Producer: Tom Evans
Producer: Colleen Allen
Director of Photography: Adam Griffiths
Camera Operator: Kyle Chappell
Camera Assistant: Chris Greef
Production Assistant: Shannon McCormack
Editing Company: Zulubot
Editor: Max Lawlor
Online: Alex Boothby
Transfer: Felipe Chaparro
Sound design: Noah Mroueh