Oscar Treasure catches Disney off-guard

Studios usually throw their publicity and marketing machines into high gear when one of their movies receives an Oscar nomination. But that ...

Studios usually throw their publicity and marketing machines into high gear when one of their movies receives an Oscar nomination. But that machine was idled on Tuesday when it came to Treasure Planet, which earned a nod as one of the five best animated movies of the year despite being the biggest flop in Walt Disney Co.’s storied moviemaking history. ‘‘It was a shock,’’ said one Disney insider.

It was a sign of just how much studio executives were caught off-guard by their good fortune, the source said, that it hadn’t even occurred to them to discuss a strategy for capitalising on a potential nomination. Treasure Planet joins two other Disney movies in the animation category, including its blockbuster hit from last summer, Lilo & Stitch, and its critically acclaimed Japanese import Spirited Away. Also nominated are 20th Century Fox’s computer-animated hit Ice Age and DreamWorks SKG’s Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron.

The Oscar accolade for Treasure Planet now puts Disney in an unusual position. Does the studio spend millions of new marketing dollars to exploit an Oscar nomination that could breathe new life into a movie that initially failed so badly? Or, does the entertainment giant play it safe, refusing to throw good money after bad? Adding to the studio’s quandary is that the core audience for Treasure Planet is young children. ‘‘Oscar nominations may give a film cache for adults, but kids could care less about Oscar nominations,’’ said Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box-office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations Co.

Disney would not comment on whether it plans to create a new marketing campaign built around the nomination, or expand the release of Treasure Planet, which is still playing in 312 theatres nationwide. Treasure Planet was a money-loser of unprecedented proportions for Disney. The adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel Treasure Island — set in outer space for the big screen — cost $140 million to produce and at least an additional $40 million to market domestically. (LATWP)