Does Size Matter?
While size doesn’t seem to have helped Columbia TriStar’s Godzilla, DreamWorks is hoping its movie about Small Soldiers becomes the big summer hit.
The movie opens this month and marks the biggest marketing effort from the new studio. Partners include: Burger King, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Travelodge, and licensees Hasbro and NASCAR. The movie features 12-inch high toys whose programming goes haywire, leading them to fight each other.
“This movie is very translatable to promotion and merchandise,” says Anne Giangardella, head of marketing and promotions at DreamWorks. “We didn’t want to overhype the project in any way, but target the key demos.”
BK will create a kids meal around the movie giving out 12 different premiums for six weeks; Coke will tie the film into its summer Coke Card program that started in May; and Travelodge will feature the film in all its locations during the summer.
In the biggest first-year launch for a movie property, Hasbro will create more than 100 different toys from the film. “If you can’t do a great toy line from this movie . . .” says Giangardella.
The film features Kristen Dunst, Gregory Smith, Denis Leary, Jay Mohr and the late Phil Hartman.
Licensing deals include interactive games from SonyPlaystation and a CD-ROM game for Windows ’95. NASCAR driver Bobby LaBonte will unveil his car with Small Soldiers graphics for the Daytona Pepsi 400 on July 4.
