|
Hollywood ToyBoy: Electrify Toy Fair How to Save Toy Fair From Its Boring Self
“The toy industry needs to wake up and smell the leather bikini,” quipped a successful sitcom producer who drops at least a 100 grand a year on his personal toys. “My own kids would rather play with my ‘adult’ stuff like Buffy action figures, than Barney plush.” So, what’s a toymaker to do with a Toy Fair booth? Get Some Color ![]() Go Video “Multimedia is the key,” countered a documentary videographer who is a devout anti-caffeine-ian, and looked down his nose at my triple-shot super-latte with a side of espresso and a handful of chocolate-covered coffee beans. “Don’t say it, show it. Get videos of kids playing with the toy and grab a dozen monitors (TVs to you non-Hollywood types) and have them all playing at once. It could be slick, or it could be cheesy, but show kids having fun.” Make It Sexy ![]() Passion Works “If [the reps] aren’t the grand champion of that game, a total ringer, then why should I care about it?” pointed out a marketing exec at a production company, who keeps her ear to the ground to see what the “next big thing” might be. “I want to see their enthusiasm for the product, not for the sale.” Sneak in the Real Kids ![]() “Kids today,” explained a child psychiatrist turned screenwriter, “are engaged by $100 million-plus budget special-effects movies, constant electronic stimulation from IM, cell phones and the Web and a pace that’s light-years ahead of any generation before them. If manufacturers don’t sell the toys the same way ... toys are dead. Someone at Toy Fair needs to light a match under a few butts and get them thinking about the 21st century. It’s a brave new world, and toys and toy conventions aren’t keeping up. Build a better booth, and they will come.” To go to the TDmonthly ToyShow Preview, with lots of new toys for 2007, click here. To get a sneak peek at some of the toys that will be at Toy Fair this year, click here. And to see what Toy Fair and the Pomona Fair looked like last year, watch our videos by clicking here. Writer's Bio: Mark Zaslove is an entertainment industry veteran in developing content (writing, directing and producing television and feature films) for the major studios, including Disney, Universal and Warner Bros. A two-time Emmy Award winner for writing and recipient of the Humanitas Prize (for writing uplifting human values in television and movies), Mark is also Head of Content Development for Nice Entertainment. Read more articles by this author
|
|