Create either a captivating static image or a particularly striking video that celebrates one of the top 5 fan-favorite movies or TV shows from Sony Pictures Entertainment’s 100 years of entertainment, in order to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Columbia Pictures.
As Columbia Pictures marks its centennial anniversary in 2024, Sony Pictures Entertainment is celebrating some of its most incredible and iconic films and TV shows, and they're bringing fans into that celebration everywhere they can. Right now, they've got fans voting on their all-time favorites, but when it's time to announce those results, they want fans to be a part of that too. In fact, they want YOU to be a part of it. They want you to create a special poster or poster video - we'll get into what that means - that can do justice to one of the films or TV shows that are selected - which, we'll remind you, will be one of the greatest of all time, so we're talking about creating something truly unforgettable and captivating.
The goal of this project is to create either a single, original static image poster, or a vertical "motion poster" as a video up to :15, and whichever you create should be a tribute to one of the following five top titles: Seinfeld, Breaking Bad, A League of Their Own (1992), The Karate Kid (1984), Spider-Man: No Way Home (2022). What you create is up to you, and depends on your artform, your skillset, and your preference but note that Sony Pictures Entertainment will be greenlighting a mixture of static images and motion posters, and each format has a different budget associated with it. Whatever you do, your poster should feel totally original, we're not looking for recreations of existing posters here. Your poster should have a unique creative approach that references and reimagines the most identifiable and fan-loved elements from the movie or show that you choose - but without feeling generic or obvious.
We really want to see your creativity soar and your talent shine with your love for these titles, whether you choose to create a minimalistic poster, a tribute to an iconic scene that sums up the film in one image, or go with a retro aesthetic that asks "What if..." by placing that movie or show in an entirely different era. Think about different artforms, styles, mediums, materials, and even tropes, trends, or tributes to famous poster artists. When you know how you want to do it, think about what you'll actually feature. Think about stories, scenes, and settings, or logos, titles, and key visuals. You can just as easily come in with a unique take on the iconic periodic table logo from Breaking Bad as you could play upon classic advertising and show us a cereal box "ad" design that commemorates Seinfeld.
In terms of video executions, you could use mediums such as stop motion, 2D, 3D papercraft, or advanced motion graphics. We do not think though that live action makes sense here though. It's important that whatever motion you do incorporate ultimately resolves on a natural poster image with an interesting composition. The final video could add interesting movement or animation to a dynamically composed poster image, such as in the example of this cinemagraph, or it might be a more advanced sequence of events that build to the final composition. Whatever it is, it's important that the final frame, if used as a thumbnail, could standalone as a celebratory poster.
See below for more information on budget recommendations but note as we expect motion posters to have a larger budget, we accordingly expect them to be more spectacular and eye-catching as well. Ultimately, these assets will be used globally, so you should avoid any text beyond the title, since other taglines, quotes, or credits would need to be localized, and that gets complicated.
While you can use characters from the movie or show in your pitch, actor likeness approvals and talent inclusion agreements may be complicated and ultimately require a different approach; including characters in your pitch won't negatively impact your chances of being greenlit though, and the ability for us to include talent in the poster is dependent on each property and individual situations. If you do choose to depict talent in your poster, please refer to the approved talent depictions in the Background. Using these depictions of talent as the basis of your art will allow for a higher likelihood of final talent approval; note that you should NOT to use the photos themselves in your design. Additionally, if choosing to depict talent, it's suggested that in your pitch you include a reference or nearly finished representation of the talent you plan to feature in your artistic style. Regardless, in the initial stages of pre-production, we will need to get approval of the talent's depiction before moving forward with creating the final piece of fan art.
For your pitch, you'll need to select a movie or tv show, and identify which type of asset you'll create, using the dropdowns in the Submission form. If you want to submit for multiple different titles, please submit separate pitches for each title. Ultimately, Sony Pictures Entertainment will greenlight a mixture of static images and motion posters. In deciding on static vs motion, beyond personal expertise, think through which medium best supports the title as well as its priority in the ranking. Budgets should consider pricing based on your chosen medium. For instance, we anticipate that motion posters will be close to the full allotted bid-ceiling while static image executions should within a budget range of $2.5K - $4.5K.
As voting will be open in the US, Canada, and Japan, Sony has a particular interest in creators from those regions. We want to see your best creative takes no matter where you live, but we especially encourage creators from US, Canada, and Japan to submit since you and your neighbors will have also helped in selecting the top titles!
For any questions or other project updates, check out the Project Forum.
DELIVERABLES: Each greenlit creator will create either a single static or video asset.
EXPECTED TIMELINE: HERE
EXPOSURE: We expect content will be used on the platforms below, but if casting talent, be sure they review our required Talent Release before they're cast, as it is NOT limited to these platforms. You should also review our Music providers in the Project Requirements, as well as the platform best practices.
TARGET AUDIENCE: Movie enthusiasts, older generations (nostalgia), younger generations (discovery), cinephiles, pop culture fans.
TONE/FEEL: Big, bold, attention-getting, splashy, exciting, celebratory, awe-inspiring, FUN.
EXECUTIONAL MANDATORIES:
By participating in this project, creators acknowledge that the Sponsor is under no obligation to greenlight a submission. Though most projects do move forward, we'll notify you in the event the Sponsor decides not to fund any submissions via the Project Forum. Regardless of the result, all submissions will be reviewed and evaluated by the Sponsor and project team.
TOP FIVE TITLES
HELPFUL EXAMPLE STATIC AND MOTION VIDEOS FOR INSPIRATION/TONE:
In order to be considered, include the below materials in your submission. For examples of effective pitches, check out this gallery. All Pitches remain private, even after a Pitch is selected, and Tongal strives to have Pitch selections made by the end of the Evaluation period, but additional time may be required by the Sponsor, depending on any number of factors.
The most compelling pitch will be greenlit by the Sponsor, and the responsible creator will then receive an email from Tongal producers detailing next steps. All submitters will also receive an automated email notification that a selection has been announced. To ensure you’re receiving project updates, review your email settings to check that you haven’t unsubscribed.
Creators who’ve been selected will receive funding upon completing the Winner Affidavit and the IP Assignment. Payment of the pitch funds is subject to a payment schedule determined by Tongal, typically included with the project timeline.
PRE-PRODUCTION REQUIREMENTS: Prior to the commencement of actual production, creators MUST receive final approval from the Sponsor on the elements below. There may be multiple rounds of feedback until an element is approved.
If you begin production before you have received final approval, you may need to reshoot or reanimate at your own expense.
For convenience, we've provided some helpful templates that you can consider using for pre-production materials, and they can all be accessed here.
BUILDING YOUR TEAM: Looking for help? Post crew and production opportunities connected to Tongal projects on Backlot. Backlot includes search tools to help you find collaborators and crew by role, skill set, location, and more, for productions of any size and type. Tongal also supports inclusivity in all productions, and strongly encourages you to hire diverse talent for your team. To find additional options for staff & crew in your area, check out these resources and partners.
REVISION REQUIREMENTS & RESOURCES: Once Content has been submitted and the initial Production Phase completed, greenlit creators will enter into Revisions. Creators will perform reasonable edits on their videos according to the Sponsor's feedback. Check out our Filmmaker Resource Portal to access helpful post-production resources like Text-Safe Guides for different platforms, Project File Organization Tutorial, Export Presets, and Captioning services.
MUSIC: If you use music from a library for your content, you MUST use one of Tongal's music providers: Jingle Punks and Universal Production Music. Music from these providers is available to registered Tongal members at no charge solely for their incorporation into submissions to this project, and will not require a Music Release Form. To learn more, click on any of the providers' names above.
If you choose to use original music, you must fill out and submit our Music Release Form. Please ensure your composer reviews and signs this form BEFORE beginning their work.
STOCK FOOTAGE: Tongal has partnered with the stock footage library STORYBLOCKS, which can be used to source video clips, photography, and After Effects templates for your video submission to this project. Video or photo content from Storyblocks is available at no charge, solely for incorporation into submissions on this project, and will not require a separate Release Form. If identifiable people or intellectual property appears in a video clip or photo, you may only utilize assets that are clearly marked “Model released: Yes” or “Property release: Yes” on the clip description pages. You may not use any audio.
If you intend to use Storyblocks, inform your Tongal producer, and an account will be created for you to access the library. Once assets are approved for delivery, you must provide a complete list of all Storyblocks content that you used via our template HERE.
ASSET DELIVERY REQUIREMENTS & RESOURCES: You must also provide all project files, editing sequences and a 1080p .mov master file, using a ProRes, Animation, or Uncompressed Codec in order to submit final payment. You are responsible for any costs associated with the hard drive and shipping. Tongal also reserves the right to request all raw files associated with the project.
To ensure a smoother delivery, please review the Export Presets, Specifications, and Project File Organization Tutorial in our Filmmaker Resource Portal.