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With its share price dropping and financial analysts griping, beleaguered DreamWorks Animation SKG today announced a Hail Mary in the form of a new hire: former top JC Penney and Target exec Michael Francis has been named to the newly created position of Chief Global Brand Officer. Francis will begin at DreamWorks Animation immediately on a part-time basis and will assume his new role full-time in February 2013.
Related: DWA Shares To Drop After ‘Guardians’ Box Office Disappoints
He’ll be responsible for DreamWorks Animation’s worldwide branding initiatives, including the branding of all of the intellectual property associated with the studio. He will also be responsible for the Company’s licensing and consumer products efforts as well as franchise management activities. “This appointment signals a singular new focus for DreamWorks Animation: to leverage the strength of its brand equity around the globe,” DWA said in a release.
“We have custom-created this vital new role specifically for Michael.”
Francis has served as CEO/Founder of Farview Associates, LLC, a global brand agency, President of JC Penney, and over 26 years with the Target Corporation, where he ultimately held the title of EVP and Chief Marketing Officer.
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One of the biggest misconceptions about Animation is that there’s viable merchandise money to be made. The properties that actually translate into merchandise are incredibly hard to predict and 1 out of 100. The money these movies can make in Global Box Office and DVD/Download is waaaaay more than the pennies a studio will earn in merch. Jeffrey is smart to hire this guy, but studios in general shouldn’t waste their time thinking about this stuff.
Why is he smart to hire a retail guy for the film business?
That’s certainly paid off in the past… NOT!
Studio heads and successful marketing folks disagree with your theory.
Lord of the Rings raised 10% of its production budget from merchandising pre-sales.
Retail chains fall over themselves to get merch. JCP counts movie merch as 50% of its profits; Macys 49%; Kohl’s 48%.
Animation is the prime market go-to. Cars had BO of 461M, merch of 10B.
Fisher-Price, Mattel, Lego, Hasbro wet their pants to get in on Toy Story.
Not too many toys were made for Silence of the Lambs, but this hire is for Dreamworks Animation.
You’re wrong. Those are two of the only animated properties that have worked in toys. Retail refuses to stock toys based on animated movie properties because it never sells. Studio heads are wrong to think there’s meaningful value in merchandising for animation. I could probably list 50-60 animated films from the last few years that couldn’t even get toy or merchandising deals — because the stuff just doesn’t sell. I agree with RT’s comment.
No, the Cars movies have made close to 9b globally in merchandising.
You’re hiring a retail dude for the movie business. Hahahahaha.
You were dumb enough to name your film RISE OF THE GUARDIANS just two years after LEGEND OF THE GUARDIANS, and now you’re hiring someone who peddles cheap clothing to brand multi-million dollar films and possible franchises, and has no experience whatsoever in the film business.
Great hire there DreamWorks Animation, keep up the good work. Why don’t you look for a shoe salesman to replace the CEO next? I’m sure that’ll really make the stock skyrocket!
First order of business…a group photo with executives dressed in St. John’s Bay striped polos.
This may be the single stupidest comment I’ve ever read on Deadline. Tell Viacom that they haven’t earned over $20 Billion on SpongeBob sometime and see how fast you get laughed out of the room. Pixar’s Cars franchise toys now outsell Hot Wheels. Shreck is likewise a giant money earner. This statement might be true for second tier studios like Cartoon Network which pick up under-designed junk, or everything that Nickelodeon has picked up for the last decade, but not for people who know how to properly pick development projects. Disney’s Phineas & Ferb made Disney a Billion last year alone. Not everything explodes like that, but when it does, you need a brand VP in place to properly capitalize and preserve brand value. Warner’s had 8 people whose only job was Harry Potter, and now work on DC Comics. The money earned from film receipts is dwarfed by the money from licensing. Wake up.
You are dead wrong RT. Why did Disney buy Marvel or Lucas? Licensing, sequels (film/TV), spin offs, toys and clothes account for BILLIONS of dollar$…. Look up how much money Disney made in licensing alone… And although some evergreen characters are on the decline, some properties still draw so much money it would make your head spin. I dare you to tell your sentiment to Stacy Snider or Bob Iger in their face…
This is everything that’s wrong with studio filmmaking now.
And here’s me thinking great brands are built on great products. There was a recent interview in ‘Screen International’ in which someone, Anne Globe, if memory serves correctly (Apologies if it doesn’t) talked about ‘Guardians’ solely in terms of “four quadrant marketing.” We know how well that worked out. DreamWorks needs to fix its films first but this is a company that can’t seem to tell wood from trees.
Don’t forget TV. Dreamworks just acquired Classic Media properties with some old gems and some hot new shows (Team Franco == Formula 1 cartoon) that could easily round out their portfolio.
The problem with DWA isn’t brand marketing. Fix the films. Fix the management. Fix the culture of the studio.
THIS IS A GREAT HIRE! Michael Francis is incredibly smart and largely responsible for the enormous success and branding of Target–and its branded properties. He has worked very closely with the entertainment community (producers, talent) over the years and will fit the position like a glove! He will ensure that DWA films and newly acquired DWA Classic Media properties are maximized to their fullest potential. Yet another example of how smart and shrewd Jeffry K. is for recruiting Michael. For you DWA naysayers, this company has had fantastic success! If it wasn’t a public company that has to its share value, there’d never be a negative word or require such an OVER ambitious release schedule. And if DWA didn’t have such big budgets….