Third International Conference on Communication & Media Studies

Abstract

Although usually invisible to the general public, the written press kit has been a staple of feature filmmaking in the American studio system for almost a century. Initially used to supply photographs for print in local newspapers and function as a “how-to” promotional kit for exhibitors, the press kit, particularly the textual production notes (the “behind the scenes” info) has emerged as a central marketing tool that offers a critical framework by which to approach its subject. Perhaps even more so than other marketing epiphenomena (trailers, posters, promotional items, etc.), the press kit (and its digital equivalent, the electronic press kit or EPK) often allows filmmakers, actors, producers, and others to speak more extensively about their understanding of the meaning and value of their work. The questions that interviewers in newspapers, websites, and television programs ask are often guided by the material found in production notes; the words used to describe the film’s plot, characters, and themes are initially codified and suggested by the press kit. This paper introduces the key concepts behind the press kit as it has functioned for the last forty years or so years, with examples drawn from the Joe Salerno Collection at ASU’s Hayden Library. The author (who has been writing press kit material for over thirty years) will draw from his own experience of using press kits as an academic resource as a way of reframing the value of these often-forgotten pieces of cinematic history. In particular, the contrast between the use of press kits to promote major studio “blockbuster” films (including the original “Star Wars” films) and how independent and documentary filmmakers utilize the press kit will be highlighted as way to begin a discussion about how public discourse about the cultural impact of film can be traced to these initial themes and ideas articulated in publicity material.