I’m fascinated with the way some movies are promoted, and severely disappointed with others. I’m becoming significantly less impressed with the “first trailers” showing a practically unintelligible glimpse of something, followed by only a string of numbers, often cryptically written so as to leave one confused, disgruntled, and generally disinterested (although that could just be me). Godzilla, Transformers, and Cloverfield all followed a similar hype-inducing pattern.
I applaud Columbia TriStar for jumping right out there and creating a giant water-hologram over Tokyo Bay to promote The Water Horse’s opening in Japan:
The projection technique is actually pretty well-suited for to movie, which earns them bonus points in my mind. It’s rare to see a flashy promo technique that truly fits with the message (or the water horse, as the case may be). Disney pioneered the water projection technique years ago in the show Fantasmic, and has continued to develop it in rides like Pirates of the Caribbean.
It’s interesting to see it being used outside of the traditional-and-expected theme park environment and to see the way movie promotions are shifting away from the screen. While The Water Horse may seem like an odd choice to promote at that level, it’s still a stunning display and an interesting application of the medium. Take that Cloverfield.
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