I am a sucker for anything cinematic. Yes, I’m in love with the ongoing story of a TV show or the big reveal of a movie. But, I’m equally entranced by the marketing behind them. How do they capture our attention in the first place? Then how do they keep our attention and our engagement?
Consider the tie-in. Tap into what the audience already knows and loves. Yet, don’t hesitate to give them a sneak peak of what they can expect.
My most recent favorite is with a Netflix original series called “13 Reasons Why.” It’s a high school mystery that unravels around the untimely death (by suicide) of a young Hannah Baker. She explains her decision through the course of 13 tapes. For it’s second season, the question had been “where do we go now?” Audience members familiar with the first season and all of its nuances would get a kick at all the clues that reel you back in. Plus the idea of the Polaroid image is a staple of season two of the series that the audience can appreciate and start to recognize. In season one, the students do a callback to the good old cassette tape. So it’s not a shock that a Polaroid can be an equally relevant call back for the new season. Watch for yourself.
13 Reasons Why – Season 2 – May 18
The tapes were just the beginning. May 18.
Posted by 13 Reasons Why on Monday, April 30, 2018
Why Am I In Love With This Piece?
- The music (not sure why, but it just works!)
- The graphic overlays of the Polaroids with the subject. Even if I have no clue what’s going, it was very clever of the graphic artist to have you wondering how they’d make each image work
- The graphic overlays are also giving you a serious sneak peak of what you can expect with each character
- The chosen characters also let you know who would play a major role in the upcoming season
- The final season with the lead character seals the deal why season 2 is a must watch
I enjoyed this simply because there was doubt on the “interwebs” as to whether a second season was needed. The team clearly pinpointed the audience’s biggest concern and found a way to drive the point home. The message? “We hear you. Season 1 wrapped into a nearly neat little bow, but there’s more. It was only the beginning.”
To be a fly on the wall of that creative team’s journey to create this piece!