After Lost in Russia, there are free movies to watch. Who will be the ＂big winner＂？ The industry said.
On the evening of March 19th, due to Miao’s direction, the movie "The Big Winner" starring Dapeng and Ada suddenly announced that it would be broadcast on Watermelon Video, Tik Tok, Today’s Headline App and Smart TV at 8 pm the next day for free.
The Beijing News reporter contacted the person in charge of Watermelon Video and related platforms in Tik Tok. The other party said that the free online movie "The Big Winner" was a special measure during the epidemic, hoping to provide more high-quality content for everyone during the epidemic prevention at home and help them spend this special period safely and fully. However, some box office analysts believe that "The Big Winner" is actually more suitable to go online at this time, and the content card itself is relatively heavy and suitable for playing on the Internet. At present, it is still a welfare for the audience to go online for free, and it will definitely receive a bonus for some time. "
In fact, "The Big Winner" is not the first movie to be broadcast on the online platform. On January 24th this year, Watermelon Video, Tik Tok and Today’s Headline reached a cooperation with Joy Media, announcing the free premiere of the Spring Festival movie Lost in Russia on New Year’s Day. On January 31st, the film "Flying Dragon Crossing the River", which was originally scheduled to be released nationwide on February 14th, was also announced to be broadcast on iQiyi and Tencent video online on February 1st. For the bold attempt of "over and over again" that cinema films have recently started to play online, can the broadcasting platform and films win the audience? The Beijing News reporter interviewed watermelon video, cinema managers, film market experts and other industry insiders to answer questions for the audience.
[Platform thinking]
Please the audience, harvest the flow and break the pattern.
In 2020, as the Spring Festival approaches, affected by the epidemic, all seven films in the Spring Festival archives were withdrawn, while Lost in Russia, directed by Xú Zhēng, found another way. On the first day of New Year’s Day, the headlines were broadcast on four platforms (Tik Tok, Today Headline, Watermelon Video and Tik Tok Volcano Edition) for free. This move attracted a lot of applause from the audience, which, to some extent, filled the embarrassment that the audience had no new films to watch during the Spring Festival. Lost in Russia’s data on the four platforms of the headline system and the fresh time of smart TV are gratifying, with a total broadcast volume of over 600 million in three days. > > > The total broadcast volume in Lost in Russia in three days exceeded 600 million, with 180 million viewers.
It can be said that through this platform broadcast, Lost in Russia’s film producers not only got 630 million yuan of online broadcast rights purchase fee, but also pleased a large number of viewers through the form of free play online. Through this cooperation, the headline broadcast platform directly made the downloads of its Tik Tok, watermelon video and other apps soar. Both sides are happy.
In the view of Mr. Zhang, a senior marketing expert in the industry, the selection of Lost in Russia for the headline broadcasting platform was a brilliant decision made after careful reference to the user’s portrait. "As a Spring Festival file, Lost in Russia is an excellent choice for the main crowd of all platforms under the headline system, and the huge installed registration volume brought by this film for all platforms under the department may take a long time to complete. It can also be said that the headlines are that these platforms have successfully broken the circle with free movies. They have done things that Youaiteng has not been able to do, and have narrowed the distance with Youaiteng in the competition of long video content. "
Subsequently, "Flying Dragon Crossing the River" was put on file until February 1st, and it was watched on two video platforms, Iqiyi and Tencent Video. Both sides used the form of "guaranteed bottom+split account". The charging standard of the two platforms is that non-members need to spend 12 yuan to watch, while VIP members need 6 yuan. Only at 12 o’clock on February 3, Tencent video showed that the film had been played 61.046 million times.
Now, The Big Winner, which was originally scheduled to be shown in the cinema, abandoned the traditional cinema, and also chose the headline broadcasting platform to play it for free, becoming the third film to be played online during the epidemic. Although the platform is temporarily unable to provide data such as broadcast volume, Mr. Zhang said, "The head video website has recently laid out high-profile movies on demand, and it has also made the film side see the possibility of realizing cash outside the cinema."
However, the Beijing News reporter contacted the person in charge of Watermelon Video and related platforms in Tik Tok, and the other person’s answer was quite "public relations", saying that the free online movie "The Big Winner" was only a special measure during the epidemic. "I hope to provide you with more high-quality content during the epidemic prevention at home and help you spend this special period safely and fully."
[Piece abacus]
In an extraordinary period, survival is the first, and it is safe to fall into the bag.
The movies played by the two cinemas on the online platform are not satisfactory in word of mouth. Is it true that, as some netizens and viewers have said, the filmmakers are eager to play online and have no confidence in the quality of the movies? Then, is it because of this reason that the third film "The Big Winner" was selected for online broadcast? The Beijing News reporter contacted the producer of the film, Magic Iron Entertainment, and the other party did not reply for the time being before the deadline.
大鹏在3月19日发的微博。
而《大赢家》的主演大鹏表示自己甚至都不知道影片要上线，还是通过朋友才得知此事，同时他也表示，这次他只是主演，上线是其他方面决定的，这个过程他没参与，所以不太想发表观点。
保利影城天安门店的影院经理李旭认为，院线电影线上播放有开始就会有人效仿，“不过如果质量好，且有信心的作品，目前还不会放到线上平台。”电影市场专家蒋勇也认同这种观点，“担心影院竞争激烈的估计宁可选择线上发布”。
营销专家张先生表示，《囧妈》和《肥龙过江》以及《大赢家》的这波操作，对影片片方来说，无疑也是给原本的院线电影开辟了一条保本的逃生通道。“疫情期间，电影院关闭、新片无法上映，而片方又急于拿钱回款去经营去开发新项目，那还不如向第一个吃螃蟹的《囧妈》学习，将影片直接卖给视频播放平台，起码可以稳稳拿到收益，毕竟落袋为安。当然，这样做也难免会给一些质量低下的烂片提供可乘之机。”
[Audience Angle]
A good thing, just watch movies, not word of mouth.
After Lost in Russia, the first person to eat crabs, went online for free, the score of Douban is only 6.0, which just passed. The high score at the beginning of the broadcast also shows that many viewers still gave a "good impression" score. However, the movie "Flying Dragon Crossing the River", which followed in Lost in Russia’s footsteps, received a score of only 4.7 at present, which also shows the audience’s disappointment with this old-fashioned "third-rate Hong Kong film". After the "Big Winner" was launched at 8 pm on March 20, as of March 21, the Douban score was temporarily 6.8 points.
"The Big Winner is actually more suitable to go online at this time. The content card itself is relatively heavy and suitable for playing on the Internet. After the epidemic, it is difficult to highlight the tight encirclement of heavy film backlog, and it is a better opportunity to release it now. At present, it is still a welfare for the audience to go online for free, and it will definitely receive a bonus for some time. " Xu, a box office analyst, believes that the upcoming opening of the cinema is estimated to be at the end of April and early May, and it is mainly based on classic excellent domestic films and foreign films that have been released, mainly to test the water, stimulate the box office and help the cinema start the transition. I haven’t heard the voice of the new film yet, but I believe there will be a new film attempt in early May. >>>Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone’s 4K restored 3D version will be replayed in the Mainland.
In Mr. Zhang’s view, it is indeed a good thing for the audience to watch movies at home for free or at a price far lower than the movie ticket without buying movie tickets. "So whether the film critics have different opinions on the quality of the film, or whether the broadcasters and filmmakers in the industry have mutual gains and losses in this operation, we have to say that the beneficiaries this time are our audience. After all, the audience has another new way to watch the new film."
[cinema view]
After the epidemic, the audience returned.
The Beijing News reporter contacted the person in charge of a cinema line about "The Big Winner" abandoning the traditional cinema line and switching to the online broadcasting platform. The other party said that because of the epidemic, the online platform is the main consumption position of the audience, and the cinema line does not have much right to speak, but after the epidemic, I believe the audience will still return to the cinema.
"I have always been optimistic about this new mode of watching movies (online broadcast). After all, it is a special practice under special circumstances. It is difficult to become the norm in the future, and the cinema still has a fixed advantage." Tang Le, director of film arrangement at the headquarters of Huayi Brothers Cinema Management Company, mentioned that the war between cinemas and networks in Hollywood has a long history. According to the traditional Hollywood movie distribution rules, a movie is first shown in the cinema for a period, and then the related DVDs will be put on the market for sale to earn the second round of income. Finally, it will be gradually broadcast on the Internet. From the cinema to the online, this window period is generally 90 days. That is to say, it takes 90 days for the audience to pay for or watch movies shown in the cinema online for free. Sony Corporation of Hollywood shortened the window period of movies like Bloodshot released on March 13th to 11 days, and The Big Winner and The Flying Dragon Crossing the River even skipped the cinema to order directly. Such a short window period, Tang Le said, is hardly normal: "First of all, the situation is special during the epidemic, after all, new movies still want to be shown on the big screen. For example, commercial blockbusters like The Wandering Earth, after all, it is difficult for the video broadcast platform to meet the visual effects, and it is difficult to have a clear definition in addition to the accounting and revenue performance mode of network broadcast. It can be seen that at present, it is small pieces rather than the mainstream that choose such online on-demand methods, so it is unrealistic to conduct online on-demand on a large scale. After all, cinema revenue is the big head. "
Industry outlook
The reopening of the cinema is just around the corner, and all parties are eager to try
Most people in the industry hold a negative attitude towards whether the cinema movie will become a normal state in the future. Jiang Yong said that it shouldn’t be too long before the opening of the cinema. The "Big Winner" may be in order to catch a late trip, and then there should be less cinema films to choose to play online. "Because with the end of the epidemic, the cinema will resume opening soon. The re-released movies are all eager to try, and the new film is definitely more riveting. "
Stills of the film "The Big Winner".
However, for most domestic audiences, a stable cinema viewing habit has been formed, which may be stopped due to the epidemic, but it will not change in the short term. It is more the choice of directors and filmmakers to play online movies for free. And after the "curious early adopter period" of online broadcasting, the advantages and attention will be less and less.
With the opening of cinemas and the return of a number of competitive classic old films and new films, the attraction of online broadcasting will become less and less. In addition to these small pieces of water testing, we have not yet seen a complete and batch cooperation model. In the view of Xu, a box office analyst, "I think the window period is still a convention in the industry, so it is unlikely that the new film will be played online in the short term. But free online is a welfare for the audience. "
In the view of box office analyst Luo Tianwen, many films rarely break the cinema window at this special time node, which is more like a temporary stop-loss behavior. Of course, the background of this decision is the global COVID-19 epidemic, and many cinemas have been forced to close down. Although (online video on demand) can make some profits in advance, the cinema share is still an important source of income. In addition, the audience may take an early adopter or pastime attitude towards VOD, but at present, going to the cinema to watch movies has become the normal state of people’s life. "Going to the cinema to watch movies has become a living habit. The long-term impact of the epidemic may change people’s lifestyle. They are not just attracted by a certain film and occasionally come to the cinema, but want to feel the charm of the movie in front of the big screen. The audience will not lose their feelings for the cinema because of the special period. However, compared with the’ just-needed’ consumption such as eating, going to the cinema to watch movies is also more dispensable. How to continue the passion for watching movies in the cinema that has been cultivated for many years is indeed a very worthwhile thing to think about. "
Beijing News reporter Teng Chao Zhou Huixiao Li Yan
Editor Huang Jialing proofreads Sissi.