SONY Pictures Television: Crackle TV Upfront
SONY Pictures’ digital entertainment network,Crackle, once again partnered with Empire to produce their 2016 Upfront — anannual presentation to advertisers and media. With an exciting lineup of bothnew, original programming and returning series, Crackle had much to present.
The Upfront took place at the New York CityCenter, and opened with welcoming remarks by SONY Pictures Television’s Presidentof Worldwide Networks, Andy Kaplan.
Next, an opening video featuring the League ofFreedom from the television series SuperMansionled to remarks by executive producers Seth Green, Zeb Wells, Matt Seinreich,and Bryan Cranston.
Crackle Senior Vice President of Digital MediaSales, James Smith, then took the stage, emphasizing that “Because we’re Sony,we’re not just talking product placement, those are a given and we can do thoseall day long, we’re talking about custom story lines, talent inclusions, andtechnology based experiences like 360 & VR.”
SONY Pictures Television’s SVP of DigitalNetworks, Eric Berger, appeared on the program to give remarks including theintroduction of a new “break-free advertising” sponsorship model, withadditional comments by Jonah Goodhart, CEO of MOAT. Eric Berger also presentedCrackle’s programming slate accompanied by many of Crackle’s biggest stars andshow runners including Kate Bosworth, Christian Cooke, and Dennis Quaid.
Among the many announcements of the day,Crackle also announced that it will create original VR narrative content. Thefirst will be a special episode of SuperMansion.Crackle will also create original VR content with sponsorship opportunities, tobe viewable on PlayStation VR, Samsung Gear VR, Google Cardboard, andsmartphones.
To close the event, Crackle introduced two neworiginal series – “Snatch” and “StartUp” – and invited the “StartUp” castmembers Adam Brody, Edi Gathegi, and Otmara Marrero to discuss the show.
In addition to securing the venue, designingthe spaces, managing event logistics, catering and stage managing the program,Empire provided all staging and technical production support.
Empire continues to set the industry standardfor producing outstanding presentations for clients seeking to communicatetheir mission, motivations and value proposition to key customers. Empire isproud to have served SONY Pictures Television and Crackle on this year's Upfront.
Guests received their first taste of technological innovation at registration, where they were welcomed by name on a reactive LED screen installation covering the full width of the entry wall. A large lunch café was created with a décor scheme that incorporated custom-built, ceiling-high steel LED frames draped with foliage to create smaller, intimate restaurant-style spaces that displayed both technology and nature.
A series of breakout sessions presented content targeted to attendees’ varied interests, while imagery displayed throughout the venue showcased real-life applications of how products designed to empower developers help to unleash the power of data and reimagine possibilities that will improve our world.
Every element of Microsoft Connect(); from registration, breakfast and keynote, to lunch and evening cocktails, were custom-designed to communicate exacting brand messaging and to deliver a high-touch guest experience to this important audience. The keynote and breakout sessions were livestreamed through an onsite studio built for this purpose and content was watched online by millions around the world.
Empire is proud to collaborate with Microsoft on this annual, top-tier business communication event.
To view excerpts of Connect(); 2017, please visit https://www.microsoft.com/connectevent
