What a glorious time to be alive. It seems that everyday there is a bit of movie news that just gets me so pumped up for its release. First it was all the Marvel hype, with Deadpool, Civil War and the like; then it was DC with Suicide Squad and Superman v Batman; but now, something else is swallowing my attention.
And it's the sequel that very well could change the way we look at movies. Forever.
I speak of course, about 10 Cloverfield Lane, which, if you haven't seen the trailer for, PLEASE GO WATCH IT NOW. I posted it below! How easy!! If that isn't enough, Here's a Link!!!
**Potential Cloverfield and 10 Cloverfield Lane Spoilers ahead**
In 2008, when the first film, Cloverfield, came out, there was massive hype surrounding its release. This was due to something called, "Viral Marketing".
By definition, Viral Marketing means:
" ... any marketing technique that induces Web sites or users to pass on a marketing message to other sites or users, creating a potentially exponential growth in the message's visibility and effect."
The original Cloverfield came out of no where, and people didn't know what to expect from it, or what it was about. There was an evolving period of initial hype, and that lead to speculation, and the formation of the ARG.
The ARG, stands for Augmented Reality Game. (And no, not like a video game) This "game" took place in the real world and was being played by everyone. How did this game get created? Who created it? What's the point?
The simple and great thing about the original Cloverfield ARG was that it was the first of its kind. The "game" was more like a mystery, fans just dubbed it a "game" because that's what it felt like. And it was fun.
There was no one sole creator of the mystery game surrounding Cloverfield, but rather it was comprised of multiple fans all over the world who wanted to know more about the movie.
And the point? Well some say there is no winning stage, but rather a collection of knowledge and community that is built around the movie.
If this sounds completely bizarre, I get it. I didn't really understand it either. But allow me to put it frank:
These "players" of the original Cloverfield ARG were banding together, in internet forums, communities, and subreddits; to share pictures, theories, and findings related to the movie.
They were basically all playing Sherlock Holmes for a mystery that needed to be solved. Except in this case, the mystery was the Cloverfield backstory and lore, and the solving was more like a meta easter egg hunt.
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J.J. Abrams, the producer of Cloverfield, is a marketing genius. He knew that using viral marketing for Cloverfield would amp up the hype, and people would go nuts searching for clues and theories related to the plot of the film.
Even after the movies release, there was even more speculation about the events that occurred in it, and what happened after.
Example Time
So let's show some quick examples from the original Cloverfield ARG:
There were so many Cloverfield easter eggs hidden intentionally by its creators. Some were found, others were not. Some clues weren't real clues at all, but a rabbit hole chase down a path that leads to nothing.
For example, many thought that inverting the poster and putting it side by side eclipsed an image of a monster. Yea... maybe.
One well known easter egg was planted at the end of the movie, in the end credits, where a strange audio clip laid right at the very end. When the audio is reversed, the phrase, "It's still alive." is distinctly heard. Thus suggesting the monster in Cloverfield was not killed after all.
More detailed Easter eggs for Cloverield and 10 Cloverfield Lane, can be found here: http://cloverfieldclues.blogspot.com/
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Simply put, it was a huge success. And the ARG slowly died off after years of no sequel. 8 long years.
But now, 10 Cloverfield Lane is exploding its own Viral Marketing campaign.
And the new ARG is back up and running.
This brings me to my soda displayed on my snapchat this weekend, called "Swamp Pop".
In a quote from Slash Films,
"When Matt Reeves‘ Cloverfield ... was one of the first big ARGs (Augmented Reality Games).
The game spanned a bunch of different websites, involving, Slusho, a Japanese drink that was spotted on a t-shirt in that initial Cloverfield teaser trailer. A drilling company named Tagruato (who has since appeared as an easter egg in other JJ Abrams films like Star Trek) had developed the popular Japanese drink using a mysterious ingredient called “seabed’s nectar”.
In the 10 Cloverfield Lane teaser trailer, we see them drinking Swamp Pop soda. Cloverfield fanatics quickly discovered that a website exists for Swamp Pop soda where you can order merchandise and soda. One of the products listed on the website is a “long-term shelter supply” was is sold out:
Note that the the number 4813 also happens to be the number that was punched into the jukebox at the beginning of the trailer."
When I heard about this, I freaked. Not only that, but the Swamp Pop also sells 4 packs, included, with additional puzzle pieces like seen in the trailer.
What's even more crazy, is that a group of redditors on the 10 Clover Field Lane Subreddit put all their acquired pieces together, and this is what it made:
The Eiffel Tower. Which is seen extensively throughout the trailer.
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So needless to say, this viral marketing is working. Right now there are over 5.5k readers on the 10 Cloverfield Lane subreddit, all trying to uncover as much as they can about this beautiful mystery.
It brings together communities, people, and movies goers alike, and it speaks to the bigger meaning of what it means to market a movie. The subtle, mysterious, and community based strategy of "Viral Marketing" is changing the field. (hehe the Clover-field)
This new and unique method is bringing people together in a way that not only gets them excited for the film, but also allows them to dive into endless fun trying to figure it all out.
And I cannot wait until March 11, when this movie comes out.
-Phillip
