Advance booking

There have been films that created history. So much so that books were written on them. Today, irrespective of whether a film is worth being written a book on or not, booklets are written for sure and that too before the films are released.

With glossy pictures, catchy punch lines and an enticing outline of the story, booklets are the new- age tools for film publicity

There have been films that created history. So much so that books were written on them. Today, irrespective of whether a film is worth being written a book on or not, booklets are written for sure and that too before the films are released. Arjun Bali, director, Ru Ba Ru explains the film maker8217;s thought process as he says, 8220;The market today is competitive and extreme visibility is important to sell your product in the market. With corporatisation taking over Bollywood why shouldn8217;t films follow the promotional strategies?8221;

Stating the importance of promotion Bali explains, 8220;In case of big budget films, the stars speak for themselves. But with low budget films where characters are more important than the stars, promotions are of utmost importance to attract audiences and media. Promotion I feel is an irreplaceable part of the entire process of film making like casting, script, shooting and editing.8221;

And once promotion is made an irreplaceable part of filmmaking, then sky is the limit. Be it hoardings, posters, CDs, wallpapers or mascots the advertising agencies leave no stone unturned. Additional, and quite recent introductions in the field of film publicity, are booklets. Stuffed with all the information about the film, designed to grab attention and loaded with eye catching wallpapers, these booklets are sent to media houses before the movie releases. Aarti Jadhav, a PR professional who8217;s worked on the promotions of a number of films like Jodha Akbar, Rock on, Mithya and so on explains, 8220;The most important factor in case of promotions is media. A booklet is designed to grab attention of the media and it is observed that it hits the bull8217;s eye.8221;

Swapnil Rane, creative head with one of the advertising companies throws light on the demand for booklets and the intricacies in designing them. 8220;The designs of the brochures depend on various things. For instance the theme of the film, the budget, the masses targeted. We call this the brief of the movie. I have designed a number of brochures for films like Fashion, Mughal-e-Azam and so on. And to explain how theme decides the design let me tell you, the brochure of Fashion that I designed looks like a makeup kit. The brochure for Mughal-e-Azam contained the entire set of the film and the moment one opened the brochure, the set came alive in front of his eyes,8221; Says he.

With so much of creativity, moolah and productivity gone behind, do the booklets have the desired effect? A media professional who does not want her identity to be disclosed says, 8220;I must say they catch your attention. Further, they give us the basic idea of what the film would be like. For instance, the layout of a comedy film is peppy. That of a serious film would be according to the theme. And yes, it also makes all the information available at one place which makes our job easy.8221;

Tahaan: The picture of an innocent kid with his donkey, the brochure conveys that it is an emotional story.
Drona: Designed with strong colours like gold and black, swords, rugged looks- the brochure of this Abhishek Bachchan, Priyanka Chopra starrer conveys nothing but power.
Wednesday: Stills from the movie, quotes from the actors, use of dark colours and punch lines that generate curiosity.
Welcome to Sajjanpur: Colourful brochure, friendly characters, and director8217;s note the brochure makes an impression that it is a light movie.