Lionsgate, a global content powerhouse, captivates next-gen audiences worldwide through a vast library of nearly 17,000 titles in films and television. The Lionsgate brand is synonymous with original, daring, and ground-breaking content meticulously crafted with an extraordinary focus on the dynamic trends and diverse makeup of their global audience.
Eight years after the release of the last Hunger Games Movie, Lionsgate planned to release the new movie, Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes in November 2023. Lionsgate’s ultimate goal was to build nostalgia around the franchise, bringing it back to its position as top of mind amongst fans of the books and movies, Gen Z, and Millennials.
KPIs for the campaign were:
Having previously executed an influencer campaign prioritizing short-form vertical content in line with the release of Lionsgate’s Joy Ride movie, global Influencer Marketing agency Digital Voices embraced the challenge of creating a buzz and organic conversation around the new movie by creating an influencer strategy surrounding the release that would inspire earned media coverage and inject nostalgia into the TikTok and Instagram feeds of both lovers of the books, viewers of the previous releases, and the new, younger generation who are yet to become invested in the franchise.
Digital Voices developed a strategic campaign for the Lionsgate movie launch of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. The objective was to create a proactive and reactive presence across TikTok and Instagram, with a focus on generating a viral moment during the official world premiere in London. The strategy involved collaborating with mid-tier creators and one trending macro-influencer to ignite a cultural conversation.
To ensure connection with diverse audiences, Digital Voices selected 15 influencers across various niches, including Pop Culture, Film/Entertainment, Comedy, Fashion, and Music. This inclusive approach aimed to engage existing fans of The Hunger Games franchise while reaching new demographics. The chosen influencers played key roles in crafting authentic content that seamlessly integrated the movie into their existing content style.
Due to the SAG-AFTRA strike, many influencers were initially hesitant to promote the movie, therefore it was essential to stay reactive and come up with creative solutions to drive intrigue and excitement through influencer content.
Influencers were encouraged to subtly show and/or mention themes from The Hunger Games books and franchise, for example, the infamous whistle. Our initial plan was to evoke nostalgia with references to the books and franchise, but not explicitly the prequel film.
Fortunately, Lionsgate received an interim agreement from SAG-AFTRA right before the release and we were quick to re-brief influencers as they were now able to promote the prequel film itself.
The live campaign timeline was set between November 1st and 17th. Lionsgate approved the concept on October 8th, requiring swift and strategic decisions. The decision to forgo paid promotions in favor of organic engagement highlighted the campaign's authenticity and impact. The influencer brief was intentionally open, allowing influencers to tailor content authentically to their audience. The open brief included a synopsis of the movie, platform-specific guidelines, and creative thought starters customized to each creator and their genre.
Tyler Warwick, with his history of Hunger Games-related videos, and Joel Sunny, known for his dramatic violin covers of songs, including The Hanging Tree, were strategic choices. Sabrina Bahsoon, or "Tube Girl," added a unique dimension by showcasing her signature lip-syncing style with a 0.5x camera view at the London World Premiere.
Research played a crucial role in influencer selection, focusing on influencers with previous mentions of The Hunger Games franchise or content aligned with its interests. TikTok and Instagram were chosen as the content platforms due to their popularity among Gen Z and young millennials, ensuring widespread reach and easy sharing of content.
The content created showcased the individual niches of each influencer, including comedy skits, musical renditions, and costume creations. The intentional choice of mid-tier influencers and a macro-influencer aimed to strike a balance between reaching a large audience and maintaining the engagement of niche creators' followers.
Digital Voices executed a well-researched, multi-platform strategy, leveraging the creativity of influencers to generate a viral moment around the Hunger Games movie launch. The campaign's success was rooted in its authenticity, inclusivity, and responsiveness to current social conversations and social media trends.
We made the movie feel big by achieving:
In addition to the contracted content, we received 11 pieces of extra influencer-generated content adding up to another 2.5 million views.
We created a conversation around movie ticket purchases and a new awareness of the movie release.
We made a splash at the London movie premier:
“Digital Voices were an effective partner for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes theatrical influencer campaign. It was a seamless process working closely with their team on influencer targets and selecting influencers that were well-aligned with Lionsgate’s overall strategy to reignite this franchise in a massive way across social.
The team successfully identified creators that are active in the fandom who curated creative that broke the feed and spoke to the core audience, creating such great excitement leading up to the film’s release!”- Sarabeth Opplinger, Lionsgate
