A generation of fans.

Looking around the theater on the opening night of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, it was easy to notice the large amount of older teens (including boys) in the audience. “Didn’t you think the audience would be younger and more female?” my guest asked. I thought back to the first film, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, and remembered lots of kids and parents that sat eagerly awaiting the darkened lights and the bright sparkle of Harry’s wand. “They’ve all grown up. This is the same audience that was in the theater 4 movies ago”. The same audience, a bit older, a bit larger and just as eager for the lights to darken. Other facts about Potter audiences began to occur to me as well, and it was becoming apparent that there might be an advantage in that. I’m quite certain, that particular fact had already occurred to Warner Bros. Pictures.

This is not just a built in audience, though it is certainly that, but that at the least. This is an audience that became friends with the characters in the movie. They were introduced through books - a terrific way to make great friends. Once they got to be mates with Harry and his cohorts at Hogwarts, they eagerly anticipated reuniting for more adventures much in the way Harry, Ron and Hermoine waited anxiously through their summers, eager to return to their camaraderie, Quidditch  matches and more wizarding. J.K. Rowling, Potter’s creator and guardian through seven volumes, created characters as richly drawn as our own families, evoking places exciting, magical and deliciously begging for exploration. All of this in a style so immersive and appealing that millions of young people found turning the pages of a book, as exciting as popping the buttons of a video game controller.

A franchise from page one.

It was clear from the outset, there would be seven Harry Potter books. The first “Year”, as the Potter books are designated, arrived in America in October of 1998. The first edition in the US weighed in at 309 pages and began the introductions to the characters and places so many would come to know so well. 2003’s US edition of Year Five:  Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was the largest Potter outing, with a deluxe volume of 870 pages. So what’s this all got to do with marketing movies? Begin to consider Warner Bros. enviable situation. On picking up the rights to do the first film, they bought into a franchise that, by the time the first film arrived in theaters, was already headed nicely into it’s third book. With the publicity that had built around volumes 1 & 2, and already posting record sales in every country where it had been released, making Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone wasn’t exactly a courageous stretch. By the time the second film was in production, Potter had been emblazoned into literary history and it was clear the film franchise could do what the literary franchise had promised - run the course to the end. Seven books. Seven movies. Seven hits. Seven blockbusters. All from one deal. Nice.

Warner works their own magic.

J.K. Rowling stands as one of the most creatively gifted children’s authors of all time. Take your shots, but her name will become part of literary history, akin to Lewis Carroll, L. Frank Baum and J.M. Barrie. The legacy of these books will be formidable and the responsibility that Warner Bros. must have felt, in bringing them to film, no less daunting. It appears that Warner took the call seriously and put forth a strong and continuing commitment to getting it all right. While most studios struggle to come up with a sequel to a popular hit, Warner was faced with the challenge of repeating a success 6 more times. The strategy smartly appears to be, do what’s best for the films, admirable, considering the complexity of that statement. Let’s start with the author. J.K. Rowling has become the first billionaire author in the history of man. Her accomplishment would seem intimidating to the most seasoned screenwriter. Enter Steve Kloves, the writer who would work closely with the Ms. Rowling through the first four Potter films. With Order of the Phoenix, writer Michael Goldenberg was given the reins. Much as Kloves had captured the feel and the atmosphere of the first four books, Goldenberg didn’t miss a beat in transitioning to the darker turns of the newer story. As one of the writers of the wonderful, Universal Pictures version of Peter Pan from 2003, Goldenberg seemed to understand both the evil and the fairytale-like battle of good and evil: Pan against Hook, Harry against Lord Voldemort. The familiar ground of fantasy characters roots perfectly into the fabric of Harry’s story and the results again succeed seamlessly.

Assigning directors would be another matter. Of the first five Potter films, there have been four different directors, the only one repeating being Chris Columbus who did the first two movies. In terms of cast, the Potter films boast an accomplishment that may never be seen in movies again, an almost perfect record of retaining every cast member through the roles of each film, with one very sad and unfortunate exception being the loss of the brilliant actor Richard Harris, who perfectly captured the subtle power and quiet guidance of Albus Dumbledore, Head Wizard of Hogwarts, and friend and mentor to Harry. (The role now taken by Michael Gambon.) The common denominator in all of this is Character. The directors of the series so far, are artists who have cemented their credibility in telling stories, first and foremost, through character. Look at some of the films that laid the foundation for the work that was to follow, as each took a turn with Harry.

Chris Columbus, a screenwriter who created the characters of Gremlins and the wonderfully imaginative world of The Goonies, became the director that brought the unforgettable character of Kevin McAllister (Macaulay Culkin’s christmas present to generations) to theaters in both Home Alone and Home Alone 2, Lost in New York.

Alfonso Cuarón, the director of Prisoner of Azkaban, brought the story of a little girl sent to a foreign boarding school while her father fights in the war, to life in 1995’s A Little Princess. His experience working with characters etched from literature is on display in 1998’s Great Expectations and just last year, his work as both an editor and a writer was recognized by the Academy Awards, in the character driven Children of Men, which he also directed.

Mike Newell, director of Goblet of Fire, has had vast experience in directing critically acclaimed films for many years. Among these, 1994’s Four Weddings and a Funeral, 1997’s Donnie Broscoe and 1999’s Pushing Tin are all standouts and here again, character pieces are at the forefront. His accomplishment in directing a young heroic figure in difficult and brave circumstances is on best display in the superb Amazing Grace and Chuck from TriStar Pictures, 1987.

Steve Kloves will be returning to the Harry Potter series as writer along with director David Yates for Harry’s next on screen adventure, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

This steadfastness in personnel is to be admired, for sure, but what is more impressive is the care and adeptness of finding the right fit. The Potter movies have succeeded, with much due to the writers and directors that have found ways to stay true to both character and story, while masterfully transforming printed page to film frame, and the actors that are pitch perfect in their roles (and seem to take an almost guilty pleasure in portraying them.) And then there is the principal cast of Hogwarts students. Without exception, Harry and his friends were cast with unknown children who have matured as people and actors while their fictional counterparts have matured as characters. It is almost wizardly to have bet on a cast of unknown kids to carry seven films over the course of nearly a decade, and have succeeded so wonderfully.

Not your average wizard, not your average audience.

So let’s take stock. There’s a great pedigree of directors. A solid pair of writers who seemed to have connected with the author of the original works on all of the important levels. Brilliant casting, young and old, with the precognitive knack for perfectly casting unknown kids who would grow into accomplished performers. And then there’s J.K. Rowling, who among all of her other talents, perhaps offers her deep belief in the integrity of her characters and Harry’s story, as her greatest contribution to the corresponding successes of each of the Potter films.

That leaves the audience, and here’s the unique advantage. The audience at each successive Harry Potter film have mirrored the audience for each successive Harry Potter book. So along with capturing the readers from the very earliest years, the audience for each grows. Along with the growing popularity and notoriety of each, curious onlookers become readers, fans and moviegoers. Then there’s the all important statistic in marketing anything: age demographics. The children who were Harry’s age in the first book have become teenagers who are Harry’s age as they await the finale of Year Seven, being published this coming weekend. With the films lagging behind by about two stories, the movie audiences have grown up just a bit more than the movie characters, nicely enabling them to get more freely out to their local theaters. They’re getting licenses, cell phones and they’re starting to socialize. Isn’t going to the movies just about everyone’s memory of a first date? Is it any mystery why this Potter, is the first Potter to be released during the summer?

Aside from this convenient coincidence of more available allowances, there’s another fact that makes Harry’s younger audience so desirable. They’re readers. Who cares about readers at the movies? Ask Imagine Entertainment who cares, and director Ron Howard will happily show you the world grosses for The Da Vinci Code. Readers make great moviegoers. Young readers make great moviegoers who will be around for many more years. You can bet that Warner Bros. has got an entire staff pouring over the hottest literary properties, hoping for that proverbial second strike of lighting. The kids in the audience are bright and aware (or looking to date someone who is). They’re likely intelligent consumers who have active and engaged imaginations. They’re responding to entertainment that transports them, challenges them and speaks to them. They show a loyalty to entertainment that they relate to and feel a connection to, created by people, who they feel understand them, and by companies that are paying attention to them. The adults who have been enjoying every page of the Potter phenomenon, are an added and sizable side benefit, to well made films that have never strayed from being true to the joy of returning to Hogwarts and another Potter adventure.

There’s gold in demographics like that, especially when audiences across the board remain pleased with your efforts. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix closed it’s opening 5 days by adding to the summer record books. While Harry was conjuring the film franchises biggest opening five day totals in the US, on the world stage, Warner Bros. enjoyed their biggest success in a legendary history, with Potter soaring well across the 300 million mark. The magic of incredible source material, it seems, can influence the making of great movies by simply creating confidence in your project, in your filmmakers and in your audience. Commit your resources, do it right and open the doors on time. No one needed to attend wizarding school to figure this out, yet it seems such an achievement when someone actually does it. In a smoky crystal ball, hidden on a dark corridor on the cobwebbed shelves of the Department of Mysteries, is the swirling prophecy that Warner Bros. will continue to get it right for two more pictures. And in the magical mist of destiny, there are a lot more records waiting to be broken.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), Harry Potter and and the Goblet of Fire (2005), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001) were all released by Warner Bros. Pictures. 1984’s Gremlins and 1985’s The Goonies are each Amblin Entertainment / Warner Bros. Pictures releases. Home Alone (1990) and Home Alone 2, Lost in New York (1992) were directed by Chris Columbus, written by John Hughes and released through Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation. A Little Princess was released by Warner Bros. Pictures in 1995. Children of Men (2006) was released by Universal Pictures. 1994’s Four Weddings and a Funeral is from Gramercy Pictures, 1997’s Donnie Broscoe is from TriStar and 1999’s Pushing Tin is from Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation. Peter Pan was released by Universal Pictures in 2003; a superb adaptation of the classic children’s book, the film was written by P.J. Hogan and Michael Goldenberg and directed by P.J. Hogan. 1998’s version of Great Expectations was released in the US by Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp. and Columbia TriStar Egmont Film Distributors. The Da Vinci Code is from Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Releasing, released in 2006, it was directed by Ron Howard. Lastly, a somewhat forgotten film that is well worth re-discovering, TriStar’s Amazing Grace and Chuck was released in 1987. An allegory of speaking out through silence in the voice of a young athelete who finds himself confronted with the reality of nuclear weapons; Amazing Grace and Chuck was written by David Field and directed by Mike Newell. The film stars Jaime Lee Curtis, William Petersen, Gregory Peck, Alex English as Amazing Grace Smith and Joshua Zuehlke as the determined little league baseball pitcher Chuck Murdock. It is unfortunately not yet available on DVD.

Tuesday, July 17, 2007