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Q1 has been truly special, with cinema experiencing a stellar start to 2015. By the end of March, cinema admissions are already up 6% year-on-year, the fourth highest total since 1972.
We’ve been saying that we’re expecting 2015 to be one of the most remarkable years for film in a long time and we still have so much to look forward to. With just one week to go until May, we’re already turning our attentions to summer, which promises to be another fantastic period for cinema.
There’s a huge variety of titles on the film schedule that will appeal to all audiences across these months, however it looks like family audiences will be champing at the bit for some of the biggest releases 2015 is likely to see (apart from perhaps a certain Mr. Bond…!).
Family films have already proven big hits this year, with Big Hero 6, Home 3D and Cinderella all taking more than £15m at the box office (and counting). More recent releases such as Spongebob’s latest film, Out of Water and Shaun the Sheep have performed admirably at a time when the breadth of films released is greater than it’s ever been.
However, for some the best is still to come. Two films which will define cinema this summer are two family juggernauts, which between them have the broadest appeal that family films in recent times have ever had.
The trailers for Minions (26 June) and Inside Out (24 July) have generated more than 107m YouTube views between them, which highlights not just that they will be leading the charge on the big screen this summer, but that opportunities for brands looking to reach a family audience are bigger and better than ever. This is in part to a large portion of the family slate now being aimed at adults as well as kids, so it isn’t just youth brands who have much to gain from running alongside family films as part of their media plan.
The release of Inside Out is testament to this trend. As well as being Pixar’s first big screen release in two years, it is the most accessible film they’ve made since Toy Story 3, and its online buzz has now truly gone into overdrive. Set inside the mind of a young American girl Riley, the five emotions in her brain (anger, sadness, disgust, fear and joy) begin to jostle for control when she has to adapt to moving to San Francisco from her mid-American town home.
The film’s more mature subject means that brands outside the more traditional youth skewed categories, such as toys and games, have a chance to reach the ever-elusive integrated family audience. The film is expected to draw in over three million DCM admissions, with a target audience of housewives and kids of mixed ages between 7 and 11, it’s the perfect time for supermarkets and FMCG brands to reach them both in volume and efficiency.
The Minions don’t need any introduction. Hot off being the highest grossing UK film of 2013 in Despicable Me 2, they now have their own feature film under the command of evil villain Scarlet Overkill who has hatched a plot to take over the world. The strength of the Minions fan base, evident from the previous Despicable Me films as well as the surge in box office films between sequels, means family advertisers are sure to hit their target audience with mass efficiency alongside the film. There are over four million DCM admissions expected for this summer hit, with a target audience of housewives and kids of mixed ages between 5 and 11.
The appeal of a family day out, as well as the strength of pester power, should not be underestimated!
With July’s AB deadline now fast approaching, it’s worth noting that cinema’s price point stays fixed no matter how close to the campaign start date you book your campaign. With over 8.5m family admissions forecast over the summer period, and a 6% audience increase since 2010, there is no better place to be seen or better time to be onscreen this summer, when nearly a third of all cinema admissions will be from family films in the most immersive, impactful environment.