In the amusement park category, Halloween is bigger than the Super Bowl. It’s an essential time for parks to win share of heart, and more importantly, share of scare. Yet, despite hosting one of the most thrilling Halloween experiences available, our new client, Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, had yet to claim their rightful place at the top of the seasonal horror–scape heap.
From a business perspective, this Halloween timeframe is also a crucial, can’t-miss window in securing early season pass purchases leading into the following (2025) year.
Based on this situation, our objectives were two-fold: claim our rightful share of scare and drive those crucial season pass purchases.
To solidify our parks as the ultimate Halloween destinations, we had to go big and we had to go scary. Oh, and due to some quick thinking and collaborating, we had to do it in three weeks.
Our final creation was a short film showcasing the spine-chilling intensity of our Halloween product, one that reshaped how amusement parks engage with audiences during spooky season. We brought in a seasoned horror film director, an Emmy-winning makeup artist, and a tested creature actor to ensure Hollywood-worthy scares that lived up to the park experience.
The plot was simple, but no less terrifying: an evil Clown stalks 4 friends and drags them off to a spectacularly horrifying fate (spoiler alert: it’s a Six Flags park). Throughout the almost 6-minute film, those iconic Golden season passes played a role in stringing the narrative together.
We called the film “Tick, Tick, Tick”, based on a recurring sound design cue that built suspense and evoked a roller coaster click-click-clicking up a track.
Visually, we drew on a mixture of classic and contemporary cinematic techniques. The cinematography played with light and shadow to create an atmosphere of unease, and tight framing heightened the sense of claustrophobia. The editing process was also essential, utilizing a mix of quick cuts and methodical, suspenseful pacing to keep viewers on edge. An Emmy-winning makeup artist and a tested creature actor contributed to the film's Hollywood-level authenticity, with horrifying prosthetics and costuming that let our Clown’s eerie physical movements shine.
Our multi-layered media strategy began with :06 teasers, a :15 trailer, and a movie poster that teased the film across paid and organic platforms. These drove to a dedicated YouTube page where viewers immersed themselves in our centerpiece: a 5:40 horror film, designed not just to engage, but to entertain and terrify.
Our campaign exceeded expectations, driving significant engagement and brand growth. Trailers achieved a 3% click-through rate, 6X higher than benchmarks, with comments reflecting a higher net sentiment than any previous video the brand had posted.
The integration of the season passes within the storyline of the video helped to boost recall, and we saw a 10% increase in pass purchases versus the prior year’s Halloween. The film's success was also validated by Editor’s Picks on both Ad Age and Adweek. And on The Drum, no less than the most frightening entity out there, AI itself, in the form of DAIVID, a creative effectiveness platform, reported “Tick Tick Tick” as the scariest ad of all time, generating 6x more “intense fear” than the average ad.
Ultimately, our carefully crafted campaign established Six Flags Entertainment Corporation as a leader in Halloween horror, ensuring guests will never again doubt the fright they’ll encounter at our parks. By leveraging high-quality production, storytelling, and organic branding, we highlighted the intensity and unique experience of Six Flags’ Halloween offerings, directly addressing the misconception that the park wasn’t scary enough. The film not only captured attention but also reinforced the brand’s commitment to delivering unparalleled frights.
