District 9

District 9 was an unknown film with no major stars. Made on a budget of just $30 million and  in direct competition with huge budget box office films like Transformers 2, it wanted to be the top movie during opening weekend.

Sony’s vivid creative materials made the District 9 world feel like reality. The communications strategy was to deploy media environments and custom creative assets to speak in one of two opposing voices - the Multi-National United (MNU), who managed the alien cohabitation in District 9 or the pro-alien counterculture living underground and online. Both sides urged moviegoers to choose a side and then take action. A massive word-of -mouth campaign was designed so that the public could discover District 9’s unique story narrative and voice their opinion. The film’s socio-political themes, such as cultural division and civil rights, were leveraged as tools to invoke an emotional response.

MNU “Humans Only” outdoor propaganda (billboards, benches, bus shelters, buses, and posters) were tagged with a website and a toll-free number where fans could report non-human sightings. The hotline voicemails were recorded and mapped out on a community watch website. MNU also ran public service announcements on national TV, in video game stores, and on local radio. The messaging online also drove viewers to a site housing a wealth of MNU content, including PSAs, alien “rules” and career opportunities. Non-humans and their advocates took to the internet. A blog “MNUSpreadsLies.com” attempted to reveal the truth about MNU. A “protest” was staged and featured publicly on YouTube. As part of a subversive social media strategy, a graffiti contest ran on Facebook in which users could draw and post their own graffiti or propaganda to their page. “This site supports non-human rights” messaging and polling units asked users whether or not non-humans deserved equal rights. Non-humans even hacked into the toll-free number to disrupt callers. For deeper immersion, players were directed to the official movie website, which housed an action-based flash game as well as an augmented reality experience which launched 3D character images from the movie. All of these efforts engaged the public to participate in a very real debate about rights and social injustice while causing wildfire word-of-mouth buzz about District 9.

District 9 opened at #1, earning $37 million that weekend ($115 million to-date) 30% more than goal, and 67% more than “GI Joe: Rise of the Cobra” in its second week, even though District 9 was in 25% fewer theaters.

The film’s Facebook fanbase grew 5500% during the campaign. Online buzz was 90% positive - 15% above comparative title set. District 9 became a Twitter “Trending Topic” by opening day.

The buzz was accompanied by a flood of consumer action - The MNU hotline generated 496,269 calls and 52,108 voicemails (80% from mobile). The online game received 537,000 game plays by opening. The Augmented Reality experience on the website received 231,705 user initiated sessions.