An animated short film festival is initially a video game, but it is one of the many film and music events that Epic Games uses to broaden its appeal.
As one of the most popular video games in the world, ‘Fortnite’ has also become a platform. It hosted virtual concerts for Travis Scott and DJ Marshmello, and it debuted the trailer for Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet”. Now Fortnite is taking another cultural action: the film festival.
Short Nite, dedicated to animated films, begins Saturday at 2 p.m. ET. The free 24-hour event features 12 animated short films, ranging from Oscar-nominated titles such as “Oktapodi” from 2007 to newer films such as “Bench” which is currently a longlist for a BAFTA award. Short Nite is the first time a video game has been used to host a film festival, and for the filmmakers it presents an unprecedented marketing opportunity: their work is broadcast on a video game that has more than 350 million registered per publisher Epic Games players.
‘Fortnite’, released in 2017, has become a cultural phenomenon known for limited time events and crossovers. – including game modes featuring “Star Wars” and Marvel Cinematic Universe characters for the aforementioned virtual concerts – as it is for the game. This is a combination to increase the appeal of the game, including audiences that do not normally play video games.
“‘Fortnite’ is a social game that helps transcend traditional game DNA,” an Epic spokesman told IndieWire in an email interview. “After realizing the social impact of ‘Fortnite’, we began to design massive participatory events and grow them over time and into different categories.”
Consumer-oriented Short Nite is not a traditional Sundance or TIFF-style film festival – acquisition transactions are not colored in, there are no awards and it is unlikely to be a network hub – but the opportunity is an opportunity for the filmmakers to promote their art to a large audience, including those who would not otherwise be exposed to their films.
“It’s a whole new platform and audience for animation,” said Rich Webber, Bench creator. ‘People who play the games will not necessarily go there to watch animation. The fact that people are going to watch your movie gives those players something new is fantastic. This is a great audience; many people play ‘Fortnite’ from all over the world. When you make something, you just want it to be seen and that it’s good to see quite a few people. ‘
These opportunities also serve as important money making opportunities for Epic. Although “Fortnite” is free to play, players can purchase V-bucks, the game’s virtual currency, to purchase in-game cosmetics (ie avatar or weapon skins) or unlock dances and other emotions. Epic usually offers microtransactions in a limited time during its special occasions, and Short Nite is no exception: a “Jumbo Popcorn Emote” is available for $ 500 (about $ 5). Such microtransactions have made “Fortnite” one of the most financially successful video games in history; Nielsen-owned SuperData reported that ‘Fortnite’ generated more than $ 1 billion in 2020 and 2019.
Limited time microtransactions tend to sell particularly well, especially when paired with a special occasion. Doug Clinton, managing partner of technical VC fund Loup Ventures, noted that events such as Short Nite could serve as strong sales drivers for Epic. He predicted that future in-game events could see additional forms of revenue.
“Scarcity has always been a good impetus to get people to buy,” Clinton said. ‘These events are like real-world events, so digital passes make a lot of sense, as do traditional e-commerce like digital or physical products. People might want to buy a movie director or get physical merchandise for a movie night, especially for things that are powerful brands like Marvel and ‘Star Wars’. ”
The video game industry likes ‘live service’ games – games that are regularly updated for months or years, as opposed to the release of new titles at regular intervals. As developers work to attract different types of consumers, virtual movie festivals, concerts, and other non-game experiences are likely to appear more in “Fortnite” and other live service games. Epic sees value in connecting with moviegoers and has made a real effort to make a name for itself in the film industry. Epic’s MegaGrants program now funds ‘Gilgamesh’, an animated film that will be created using Unreal Engine software.
Epic did not want to provide information on the number of consumers who created ‘Fortnite’ accounts to participate in the game’s previous music and movie events, but in April 2020, Epic claims more than 12 million players took part in Scott’s “Fortnite” concert. As for the artists, Forbes reported in February 2019 that DJ Marshmello’s music enjoyed huge increases in streaming and sales after its virtual Fortnite concert event.
“The gaming industry has never thought of itself as more than just games where people come to do one specific thing and then leave,” Clinton said. ” Fortnite ‘has shown the power to have this kind of open platform where people not only come to play a game, but also connect over different things … Twitch, Twitter, Instagram and other traditional social media platforms have so much going on, it’s easy to get lost in the noise when you do a movie event or launch a product. ‘Fortnite’ is an interactive world and it’s still a fresh, unobstructed place for companies and creators to share their wares. ”
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