Who is Mr. Sardonicus, and what the hell has he got to do with "Gamification"?
Why do I do all of this? I don't know, I guess I just love movies. Visiting all the news sites, reading all the blogs, watching all the trailers, consuming all the content - for me, that's not wasting time, that's training. I'm preparing for all the conversations and "movie moments" I'm going to have in the future. I'm biding my time waiting for questions like - Who's that actor? - Will they be doing a sequel? - Was that stunt real? - Should I go and see that movie? - because somewhere deep down answering these questions makes me feel like I'm #winning.
You see, for me, and for millions of other people like me, "Movies" are a game.
William Castle may not have made history as a silver screen heavyweight, nor will I vouch for his cinematic brilliance, but he will forever be known as the man who made movies fun, like a game, using a variety of marketing gimmicks. One of those gimmicks was used to promote Mr. Sardonicus, a horror film produced and directed by Castle back in 1961. This is, as far as I know, the first example of what could be considered prehistoric "Gamification" in the movie industry.
The film tells the story of a man (Sardonicus) who decides to rob his father's grave to steal obtain a #winning lottery ticket. Upon taking the ticket his face freezes into a horrifying grin (shown earlier). Sardonicus tries his hardest to use the money to be cured, but sadly dies when he succumbs to not being able to eat or drink.
Castle (not the writer) cleverly led audiences to believe that Columbia Pictures had forced him to shoot a second ending for the film, one that allowed Sardonicus to live. Upon purchasing a ticket to see the film, audiences were given the unique opportunity to participate in a "Punishment Poll" (Cool, right? The SAW franchise should take notes). Each patron was handed a glow-in-the-dark card that featured a hand with a thumb sticking out. Then, when prompted by Castle himself, the audience would raise the card with the thumb pointing up or down, making everyone in the cinema feel like an emperor determining the outcome of a gladitorial battle.
As you can probably expect, and as legend has it, no audience ever offered poor Sardonicus mercy and as such, the alternate ending was never screened, which led to industry speculations that Castle never even shot it in the first place - and who really cares if he did or not, that's not the point.
Now, for a bit of fun, take the Sardonicus "Choose Your Own Ending" gimmick and apply it to some of Hollywood's biggest movies and then write about it in the comments. A particular movie that is soon to be re-released in 3D springs to mind...
With Sardonicus, what did Castle achieve?
Now, for a bit of fun, take the Sardonicus "Choose Your Own Ending" gimmick and apply it to some of Hollywood's biggest movies and then write about it in the comments. A particular movie that is soon to be re-released in 3D springs to mind...
With Sardonicus, what did Castle achieve?
- Press, PR and "Virality" - before it was even a word!
- Interactivity & Group Participation - EVERYONE voted!
- Conversations - "Should he live?" "Nah, LOL"
- Customer Feedback - The audience felt like their opinion mattered!
- Differentation - The "Punishment Poll" was enough to sway people to buy a ticket!
- Fun, fun, fun - The audience walked out of the cinema smiling and happy, despite the fact the movie probably sucked
balls!
Now, out of 50 points, how did all of you score in my blog?
- 10 Points - You found the two Charlie Sheen references
- 10 Points - You can name the actor pictured in 'Gladiator' & spell it correctly
- 10 Points - You know the first names of the characters pictured in 'Titanic'
- 10 Points - You got the reference to the TV show 'Castle' without clicking the link
- 10 Points - You knew BOM was an abbreviation for Box Office Mojo
- #Winning
ReplyDelete- Johnny Cash
- Neo and Trinity
- Nathan Fillion bitches
- Thanks to you, I knew this
27 points!
I like movies to hold my hand and lead me through a story, the ups and the downs. Adding gamification elements don't appeal to me for all movies, but specific fun movies it's a good idea.
Decades ago, the old bad horror movies included audience participation, people in costumes will appear from side doors to give people a fright, it was an extra layer to a fun night out, since the movie itself was never a strong point.
Gamification in the cinema can be a good thing, but only if it's focused, it can't be a blanket feature for every movie released, as it would take away from the strengths of the silver screen.
But the idea of going to a horribly bad movie (see: The Room), and adding elements of gaming into the mix, that makes for a really enjoyable evening.