How did the PRODUCTION and MARKETING/DISTRIBUTION of "Skyfall" influence its success at the box office?

Before the film even entered the production phase, audiences were excited for its upcoming release. The reason audiences were eagerly awaiting this highly anticipating film was because of the enormous success and legacy of the James Bond franchise. The franchise had already established itself as one of the most renowned and respected film franchises ever, so audiences and fans of the James Bond series would go to watch the film regardless of the story, actors or other factors which could affect an audience's perception and views. In addition, the year Skyfall was released also marked the 50th anniversary of the release of the first James Bond film, Dr No. This made Skyfall even more monumentous. The Olympics also took place in London in 2012; just before the opening ceremony, a skit saw Daniel Craig (as James Bond) accompanying the Queen to the opening ceremony.

Although the Olympics Opening Ceremony took place in July, it was a prime advertising opportunity for Skyfall and also generated excitement among the public for its release.

Skyfall is the first James Bond to be shot in with IMAX cameras. IMAX cameras have the highest resolution and also use a 70 millimeter film which is twice as wide as what's used in ordinary cameras. For audiences to watch the film in an IMAX cinema, they would have to pay a lot more than if they wanted to watch the film in a standard cinema. This would enhance the film's box office success.

As Skyfall was produced by Sony (a conglomorate), they are able to use synergy effectively to boost profits. Sony own lots of different companies and they also own a record label which Adele is signed to. Adele wrote and sang the official theme song for Skyfall, also called Skyfall. This boosted awareness and excitement for the film as Adele achieved enormous success prior to Skyfall and is one of the world's best selling artists.This is an example of how media convergence is used to promote two different products.




Several marketing strategies were also used to help increase the chance of the film's box office success. For example, key members of the cast and crew took part in press junkets.











Skyfall also had tie ins with several other major brands such as Heineken and Coke Zero, both of which are products placed in the film. Although this could be considered not very synergetic as it benefitted the products more than the film.

Posters were also released; some were released individually with key characters on them, such as James Bond and Mrs Moneypenny.

In addition, during the opening weekend of Skyfall, Sony Mobile carried out a stunt to promote the waterproof smartphone Xperia acro S. Not only did this promote the smart phone but also the film; people in the audience during this stunt would tell their friends and family of the experience and more people would attend viewings of the film in the hope something similar would happen to them. Word of mouth is the most effective form of promotion.





Due to the collective effort of all of these forms of promotion and hype, plus more, the film was met with great success at the box office. On its opening weekend, it grossed $80.6 million from 25 markets and is the highest grossing film worldwide for Sony Pictures and also the highest grossing film of all time in the UK. Skyfall has earned $1.1 billion world wide.