| Date | |
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| Author | DCM |
| Categories | cinema |
On Sunday (2 March), the 86th Academy Awards took place in Hollywood - an annual gathering of the brightest stars and biggest brands. From fashion labels vying to get their name on the red carpet, to TV spots, to experiential activity – the advertising frenzy around this global event is getting crazier every year…
The Oscars dominated social media with host Ellen DeGeneres posting the ultimate celebrity selfie during the live telecast. The picture, taken by nominee Bradley Cooper, of DeGeneres surrounded by Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, Julia Roberts, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt and Kevin Spacey smashed the Twitter retweet record set by Barack and Michelle Obama, after it was retweeted more than 2m times.
Big fashion brand winners included Armani and Prada who dressed Best Actress winner Cate Blanchett and Best Supporting Actress winner Lupita Nyong'o. Coveted mentions in the ubiquitous Best Dressed lists were also secured by: Dior, Alexander McQueen and Versace. Who’s wearing what can often appear to overshadow who’s winning what, but what may seem trivial to an avid film fan can translate to millions of dollars for these brands.
Other brands competing for attention through ever more integrated experiential marketing around the Oscars this year included Banana Republic, Fiat, Stella Artois, Grey Goose, L’Oreal and two magazines – People and Vanity Fair.
Vanity Fair hosts the coveted go-to after-party, now in its 19th year and an institution in itself. The magazine has also extended its presence to include a Vanity Fair Social Club that incorporates branded work spaces for influential bloggers and online reporters that are fitted out with amenities such as a media wall and a vending machine powered by Twitter – giving away merchandise in exchange for sponsor-friendly posts.
However, all of this activity is dwarfed by the biggest Oscars branding achievement of them all – the phenomenon of awards season that has become known as the ‘McConnaisance’. Matthew McConaughey’s acceptance of the Best Actor award last night was the culmination of an extensive rebranding exercise that has transformed his career.
After some initially fantastic performances in Dazed & Confused and A Time to Kill, he built up a solid catalogue of rom-coms, reaching a nadir in the Scrooge-inspired lead role in the Ghosts of Girlfriends Past.
According to McConaughey: “I was getting a lot of the same sort of submissions, some comedies, some action adventure, and I remember thinking ‘I like that, but I could do that next week’.
“I want to read something that spooks and scares me and challenges me and makes me feel like ‘I don’t know what I’m gonna do with that, but I can’t wait to find out’. So what I had to do was say no to some things.”
Bravely saying ‘no’ led to a six-month dry spell that gave him and his audience the space to appreciate the top notch performances to follow. His career-defining performance in Dallas Buyers Club was preceded by impressive turns in The Lincoln Lawyer, Killer Joe, Magic Mike and Mud.
The standout quote of his breakout role as Wooderson in Dazed & Confused: “You just gotta keep livin’, man, L-I-V-I-N,” was referenced at the end of his passionate Oscars speech that has seen him come full circle in his career.
“So to any of us, whatever those things are and whatever it is we look up to, whatever it is we look forward to and whoever it is we're chasing, to that I say Amen. To that I say alright, alright, alright. And just keep living, huh? Thank you.”
His Oscar achievement will now be followed up by the lead role in the next Christopher Nolan blockbuster, Interstellar. He’s made it look relatively easy, apart from the recent 50 pound weightloss, but as many brands will know, transforming established perceptions is anything but.
Perhaps all of us could learn from the ‘McConnaisance’ approach which started with simply saying ‘no’ and then a selective ‘yes’ to the right brand opportunities.
This article first appeared on Media Week 05/03/2014