IndieFlix

The economic downturn has made us all think differently about how we spend money. It has cast a cloud of mindfulness over everything from weekly grocery shopping habits to the way entertainment is made and marketed.

Movie tickets are more expensive than ever and Americans are paying closer attention to what entertainment they spend their money on. Studios haven’t really caught on to that yet and continue to spend thousands of dollars marketing movies that flop. Audiences are trusting studio messaging less and less, instead relying on word-of-mouth recommendations and critic suggestions.

The story of Paramount’s new film “Paranormal Activity” is a fascinating look at marketing to today’s audiences. It has proven time and again that not every big budget studio release should have national, widespread screenings (case in point: “All About Steve.” ‘Nuff said.)

So how did the “Paranormal” director do it? The way most indie filmmakers start. With a good concept, a home video camera and a $15,000 budget. Writer-director Oren Peli had never made a movie before, but he knew that he wanted to make one about strange happenings in a house while everyone was asleep. Peli had lived what he thought to be a haunted house and he based the film off those experiences, trying, the whole time, to be “as real as possible.”

In an exclusive interview on Shock Till You Drop, Peli talks in-depth about his filmmaking process. He shot the entire thing over 7 days in his own home, which he spent a year preparing for. Not only did he write and direct the film, but he also edited, audio-mixed and casted the entire thing.

You can read the whole thing here.

After the film wrapped, Peli signed with Creative Artists Agency, which helped him get the film at the 2007 Screamfest Horror Film Festival and gave away DVDs to anyone who would distribute it. But even after the successful screening, it got denied by Sundance and no major distributors appeared. Eventually, it ended up at Dreamworks, where it sat in purgatory until it got into the right hands, which eventually led to Steven Spielberg.

Apparently, the film terrified Spielberg but talks were still floating around to remake the movie and be “in business” with Peli. However, a small stipulation in their contract saved the original. Studio execs agreed to see how audiences reacted to a one-time screening of the first film.

Audiences walked out. Not because it was horrible, but because it was horrifying. Still, the film was put on hold due to a contract renegotiation with Paramount Pictures. Peli and team kept pushing, however, and the positive buzz reinforced this fall’s release date.

Paramount online advertising executive Amy Powell decided go the viral online marketing route over hard-to-sell “this is what you should be watching” tactics generally employed by large studios. She credits Barack Obama’s White House win as her inspiration.

In mid-September, Paramount hosted 13 “college-town” screenings and Powell petitioned for audiences to demand hometown screenings by posting a call-to-action on eventfuls.com in what became the first viral marketing campaign of its kind from a major studio. The studio agreed that if the film got a million votes, they’d release it nationwide.

“Paranormal Activity” could be leading the way to cheap, long-term buzz marketing. Rather than relying on a dozen film previews before mainstream movie titles to predict top box office hits, audiences are watching movies with good content and word-of-mouth recommendations. “Zombieland” and “District 9” are case-in-point. Good movies, no-name actors and widespread social networking support.

The 13 sold-out screenings spoke loud and clear. Powell researched where the most interest for the film was coming from and then hosted eight midnight screenings in those demographics. The entire event was determined by Internet buzz and traffic numbers, not Paramount. When movie blogs Bloodydisgusting, ComingSoon and Fear.net got on board, the numbers went through the roof.

Fans started to “tweet their screams” and joined the Facebook group. When the demand hit a million, “You Did It!” messaging proclaimed loud and clear across the film’s web site. Audiences will get their screams and online marketing establishes itself once again as an effective way at targeting film audiences and delivering what they want to see.

So how could an indie filmmaker promote their film similarly? Take a cue from the Paramount execs. Add a “demand it” widget to your homepage. Link your Facebook and Twitter pages and get audiences involved in the screening process. Instead of advertising the film with only movie stills, try throwing a couple of audience reaction shots into the mix.

It takes cutting-edge and relevant content to make a successful film, but it also takes a bit of creativity. And, if “Paranormal Activity” suggests anything, you better act quick, because Hollywood is catching on.