When are film trailers released?

Deciding the date of the film trailer to be released is an important aspect in order to get as much profit as possible (it is often called 'positioning' of the film), it is essential to have their customers in consideration whilst deciding on this notice. Commonly, the release date of a film depends on the type of film released (in particularly, the genre). Typically, the films are released in the cinema around week ends rather than workdays because it will increase the chance of a customer buying the ticket because the general public (including target audience) has their days off during the weekends. Additionally, the release date varies on the type of genre such as family orientated movies. The particular genres are more likely to be released during convenient times for the family such as school holidays.

So, why is it so important to release certain film genres at different times of year? This is a chart of films being released  in August, September and October explains it perfectly. Judging by the colours, August is an important month for audience that are targeted to be from 15 to 24 years old. This is because they are students and like every student in United Kingdom, they have summer holidays during that specific time. In order to made it even more convenient for their target audience, all of the films are released on 26th of August which is a Friday making it easier for students that work part-time. Right after August, the films marked in 'red' have dramatically decreased, instead, September and October is more focused on Culture and Family. Overall, the red marked films have decreased but the films that are specifically targeted for young male audience have increased during September and October (which are not during school holidays). On the other hand, all of the films released are going to be on a Friday so the customers have enough time to watch it on the first weekend after it's released as it is the most important weekend for the film. After that weekend, the hype will decrease until the film will eventually be mostly forgotten. This chart helps us understand the key release dates for film and how the whole film release 'schedule' works. For example, most films are for young adults and teenagers, therefore releasing the films during Easter, Christmas (particularly for family films) and Bank holidays will bring more profits rather than releasing it on an average working day such as Monday.

Examples of Promotion:

Space Between Us (Release date: 10th of February 2017)

 For romance films, February is an important month because it has Valentines Day. A universal day for couples and love. "Space Between Us" is one example as it will be released in February and its category is Sci-Fi, Romance and Drama. This is effective marketing as it can act as an early valentine's present and bonding experience for couples. To back this up, the film is targeted towards young people (15 to 24 years old) of both genders and in order to make it more relatable for audience in that age gap, the main character is also quite young. In order to build the 'hype' the trailer was released early, judging by YouTube, it was published in 25th of May 2016. This type of film will not only be attracting Valentine couples but also single people who are generally interested in the Sci-Fi genre and would mostly watch the film for that reason as the concept of this film idea is quite interesting.

Office Christmas Party (Release date: 9th Of December 2016)

This particular film is also targeted for young people and families that have a child aged 15+. It is also heavily holiday themed as it will be releasing just before Christmas making it a great present for friends and families as well as a great way to spend time enjoying the holiday to its fullest. This film's genre is 'Comedy' meaning that it might have offensive and sexual humour. This is why it's not described as 'Family, Comedy' genre because it's not suitable for children under the age of 15. The trailer itself was released on 16th of July 2016 in order to get as many views and build the hype before the actual film releases in cinemas. This film will be effective because Christmas is one of the most important days of the year as most families in United States, Europe and many other parts of the world celebrate it to the fullest by gathering in families and buying presents. Many successful Christmas movies such as ''Home Alone", "How Grinch Stole Christmas" and "Polar Express" are bought and watched on television and for many other platforms making these films as 'traditions' to watch every year. This works similarly to Christmas music, people will hear and repeat some old and famous Christmas song every year.