“We lock up our customers and take their phones” Secret Cinema CEO Max Alexander explains the marketing challenges of the immersive film business.
Max Alexander is bleary eyed when he speaks to us. The CEO of Secret Cinema has just returned from Shanghai, where the live theatre-come-film company has just launched its first international preview.
By all accounts the production of Casino Royale, the first of Daniel Craig’s 007 films, was well received by the Chinese public. As part of the extensive set, viewers experienced recreations of several locations within the film including Madagascar and Miami, and they were even given the chance to take a flutter in a Montenegrin casino. But there was a slight problem.
“After the final preview we were out for dinner with our partners when all of sudden some of our Chinese colleagues stood up and left. We thought they’d just gone out for a cigarette, but then quite some time passed,” explains Alexander.
The partners had actually received a call from the cultural bureau which had analysed the social media posts from the event. Viewers had especially enjoyed the opportunity to gamble – something that hadn’t gone down too well with the Chinese authorities and their strict gambling laws.
“It was 11 o’clock at night and we were a couple of bottles of whiskey down, the show was due to open at 11 o’clock the next morning and they said you’re going to have to take the gambling out.
“We’ve had to get quite good at accepting red lines.”
Such last minute changes are a common occurrence for Alexander and his team.
Secret Cinema essentially merges live, immersive experiences with watching films. It was founded in 2007 by Fabien Riggall and has grown largely through word of mouth marketing.
Source: What is Secret Cinema and how does its business work?