Tag: noah baumbach

Marriage Story – Marketing Recap

How Netflix is selling the latest from writer/director Noah Baumbach.

marriage story poster 3There are countless movies that chronicle the beginnings of a relationship. Plenty capture the middle of a marriage as well, even if the focus isn’t on that couple but instead on others around them.

With this week’s Marriage Story, writer/director Noah Baumbach takes on the ending of a marriage, a phase that doesn’t get a whole lot of cinematic attention. Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson play Charlie and Nicole, a couple whose marriage starts out romantic and idyllic. Over time, though, cracks start to form as frustrations and tensions mount. Through it all, including their eventual divorce proceedings, the two must find ways to remain connected in part for the sake of their son Henry.

Netflix has given the movie a marketing campaign that emphasizes the way Charlie and Nicole have been, are and always be together and yet apart. Like many of its recent high-profile releases, Marriage Story received a limited theatrical release in advance of it becoming available for streaming subscribers this week.

(Note: I usually write these in advance of the theatrical release, but this one slipped by me so I’m publishing it as it comes to streaming. These things happen.)

The Posters

The movie’s parallel storylines are made explicit on the pair of posters (by marketing agency BLT Communications) released in August at the same time as the trailer. One shows Nicole and the other Charlie, both of their silhouettes set against lightly colored backgrounds with a photo of the city they live in shown within the cutout.

Charlie and Nicole are shown with Henry in happier times on the theatrical poster from October. The couple is playfully embracing as Henry squirms at the bottom of the picture, a pose familiar to any kid who’s been caught in the middle when the adults decide to get a little mushy. It’s a simple poster that seems like it could be for a similar movie from the mid-70s but it establishes the core dynamic of the story, at least as it exists at the outset.

The Trailers

There were two trailers released around the time the film was premiering at the Venice Film Festival in August, one that had Charlie sharing what he loves about Nicole and one with Nicole offering a similar perspective on Charlie. The dual perspectives show the high points of their marriage before devolving into the end of their marriage, when they don’t have anything to say to each other. It’s a clever way to sell the unique nature of the movie’s story and certainly works to achieve a balance that a standard trailer would have a difficult time with.

The second trailer (1.9 million views on YouTube) came out in mid-October and combined Charlie’s and Nicole’s stories, starting with them sharing what it is they love about each other before showing how they navigate the dissolution of their marriage. Despite that, it becomes clear they are still going to be part of each other’s lives, which is just as tricky as remaining married was.

Online and Social

You won’t find a synopsis on the movie’s official website, which instead focuses on the chasm between Nicole and Charlie. The character-centric key art is placed on either side of the site’s front page and clicking their outline will take you to the appropriate early trailers. The other trailer as well as the bevy of featurettes released recently are also curate on the site.

Advertising and Promotions

Details about the film started to come out in late July, culminating in the announcement it would screen at the 2019 Venice Film Festival. A screening of the movie at the Telluride Film Festival was preceded by a tribute to Driver that was introduced by Martin Scorsese, who directed the actor in 2017’s Silence. It was also scheduled as the “Centerpiece” selection at this year’s New York Film Festival and among those showing at the Hamptons Film Festival.

Screening at the Toronto Film Festival in September generated conversations that the movie might be Netflix’s best bet yet at getting into awards consideration given the performance from Driver and Johansson along with others. It was then scheduled to be the opening night feature at Film Fest 919 in October. In advance of the movie’s screening at the Santa Barbara Film Festival, Driver and Johansson were named “Outstanding Performers of the Year.”

Netflix managed to reopen the recently-shuttered Paris Theater in New York City to screen the film.

In a surprise twist, the movie was added to the AFI Fest lineup at the last minute when Apple pulled The Banker, which had been scheduled to screen there, from the lineup.

Featurettes released by Netflix included one that focused on the ensemble cast that was assembled by Baumbach and how composer Randy Newman created the film’s score. Also getting attention was costume designer Mark Bridges, editor Jennifer Lame and costar Laura Dern.

Just a few days ago the movie got a big boost when it picked up multiple wins at the Gotham Awards. Those come after it received multiple Independent Spirit Awards nominations.

Media and Press

While in Venice, Johansson and Driver talked about making the movie with Baumbach and how the story related to the personal troubles some of them have gone through in the past.

A massive profile of Johansson included mention of the many high-profile films she has in the works and on the release schedule, but it was her comments about Woody Allen that generated the most headlines.

Press coverage at Toronto included awards speculation as well as assessments of where Netflix was as a distributor along with various interviews with the cast and filmmakers.

A profile of Driver from October talked about his career as a whole and the high-profile directors who have cast him in their movies while pointing out the unconventional nature of his appearance and personality.

Dern was interviewed about how quickly she agreed to sign on to the project and what it was that attracted her.

An interview with Baumbach allowed him to talk about how he developed the story and what real life events inspired him to write it. At the movie’s premiere Johansson and the rest of the cast praised the director while explaining what the story meant to them and why they got involved.

While Johansson talked about the movie a couple months ago while promoting JoJo Rabbit, Driver made some talk show appearances closer to release, including on “The Late Show,” “Late Night” and elsewhere. Baumbach himself was interviewed on “The Daily Show” and Dern appeared on “Kimmel” and other shows.

Another interview with the director focused on the work that went into some of the movie’s key scenes. There were also interviews with Alda and Dern about their roles in the movie along with their entire careers. In addition to one more profile of Baumbach, there was also a features on Julie Haggerty that looked at her career and how it’s now included this film

Overall

On some level the campaign is fairly straightforward, selling a movie that hits all the beats you might expect from what is essentially a relationship drama.

But there’s so much here that’s not shown, it’s hard not to think there’s a sucker punch waiting around the corner. That feeling is reinforced by the way the campaign has kept Charlie and Nicole apart in all the individual elements.

Really, then, what’s being sold here is a tearjerker from a reliably original writer/director and featuring a talented cast. The twists and turns of the story will be rending and affirming by turns, but it’s the journey here that is the main attraction.

Picking Up the Spare

A couple additional featurettes from Netflix on the movie’s production design and the way Baumbach approached directing the story. There were also clips of conversations from festivals with Driver and Baumbach, Johansson and costar Ray Liotta. The much-discussed scene of Driver singing Sondheim was released as a clip.

Baumbach was interviewed on “The Tonight Show” while he and editor Jennifer Lame spoke together about honing the story and its pacing.

A profile of Driver included comments from Baumbach and others about the actor’s approach to his roles and more.

Another featurette from Netflix on the writing of the film.

The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) – Marketing Recap

Dustin Hoffman is the family patriarch Harold Meyerowitz in The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected), the new movie from writer/director Noah Baumbach. Harold is a well-known New York City artist whose career is being celebrated at an upcoming event.

That brings together Harold’s grown children Jean (Elizabeth Marvel), Danny (Adam Sandler) and Matthew (Ben Stiller). Each has their own issues, some of which they trace back to being rooted in their father’s upbringing and the imposing shadow he cast over their lives. As usual, such gatherings are mixed with emotion and chaos as everyone deals with whatever baggage they’re carrying.

The Posters

The primary poster Netflix created shows Harold in two separate pictures, each accompanied by just one of his boys. He’s walking with Danny in the one at the top and with Matthew in the one below the title. That conveys at least a little about the story we’ll be watching, but the overall vibe is similar to that of an indie drama from Miramax circa 1994.

Three more posters were released, each showing Harold with a different character. In one he’s sitting at dinner with Maureen while the other two are just expanded versions of the photos shown on the primary one-sheet.

The Trailers

The first trailer establishes this as an ensemble dramatic comedy, focused on Danny playing piano and having a laugh with his dad. Around that are short other clips from the film showing the rest of the family and including a number of quotes from critics who saw early screenings. It’s clear this is a loving but dysfunctional family we’re watching, though.

The second trailer is much more focused on the story. Matthew is trying (unsuccessfully) to impress his dad while the two are out for a meal. Then we hear Danny talking about how he never really spent time with his dad when he was a kid. Those two scenes establish the family dynamic, along with someone’s surprise that Harold has two sons. Other hijinks, hilarity and family pathos follow as we find out more about how all these characters relate to each other.

The idea here is to sell the movie as family comedy/drama, that much is clear. But it never actually digs into what it is that has everyone coming together or what the motivating plot elements are. So we see characters and get a sense of their actions, but we don’t know why they’re doing what they’re doing. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, it’s just obviously the approach Netflix is taking in selling the movie.

Online and Social

No web presence here, as usual for Netflix. Some support was offered on brand social media channels but no distinct profiles were created for the movie.

Advertising and Cross-Promotions

There were a few paid social posts around the time the trailer premiered but that’s about it unless there are loads of banner ads across the web I haven’t seen.

Media and Publicity

The first real news about the movie came when it was announced it had been picked up by Netflix. The movie was one of the handful that had its premiere at this year’s Cannes International Film Festival. Prior to that Hoffman and Baumbach interviewed each other at the Tribeca Film Festival about the genesis of the project, how they worked together and more.

A short time later some first-look stills were released. While at Cannes Baumbach talked about how he made the movie for the big screen but also loved working with Netflix to help get the movie out there. And Sandler, whose performance was praised by many as his best in a long, long time, talked about the pressure of working on a picture like this and his desire to not let anyone down. Later on it was announced as one of the films that would screen at the New York Film Festival.

The part Stiller plays was, according to this story, written by Baumbach specifically for him after working with the actor on two previous films. The actor and director talked there about their senses of humor and more as well. Baumbach kept talking about the inspiration behind the story, the family dynamic he was hoping to capture and more.

Shortly before release Netflix announced it would give the movie a limited, awards-qualifying theatrical run in select cities.

Hoffman and Baumbach talked jointly about how the director, through Sandler and Stiller, persuaded the actor to finally join the production, the comedy found in the relationships portrayed in the story and more.

Overall

We’re no stranger to stories of the privileged but angsty lives of New York creatives. That’s been the basis for countless movies, a trend I’ve called out as problematic a few times in the past. So the movie being sold here doesn’t appear to be breaking any new ground on that front and is easy to dismiss by anyone who’d like to see a bit more racial and socioeconomic representation on screen.

So how does the campaign try to work around that sizable roadblock?

First, it focuses much of its attention on Sandler, who is turning in a much more dramatic performance than he usually does here. Sandler often appears to be sleepwalking through the comedies he makes, putting the minimum viable effort into the work and sometimes even appearing to be annoyed he has to be there in the first place.

Second, it keeps reinforcing the connection all the characters have to Hoffman’s Harold. Everything is centered there, both the backstory and the current story. While I still feel some motivation would have been nice to offer in the campaign, the fact that we’re constantly reminded of how everyone is relating to their father and his influence is a smart move.

Add in appeals to fans of Baumbach’s previous work and you have a decent campaign that’s surprisingly full-throated for a Netflix original release.

Chris Thilk is a freelance writer and content strategist who lives in the Chicago suburbs.