A Deep Dive: How Public Relations Works With Entertainment

Cover Photo From Creative Commons

Written by Degan Schloemann, assisted and edited by AI tools.

This week, we’re taking a deep dive into the theme of my blog. 

I have written this blog with a focus on the intertwined fields of public relations and the entertainment industry. While this may be an obvious correlation to some, public relations plays such an important part to all parts of the entertainment industry’s success. The creativity, strategies, and planning are analyzed to perfectly fit each concert, movie, or show. 

Let’s look at three ways PR and entertainment work together: 

Building Suspense

Public relations works hand in hand with the entertainment industry to build anticipation. Whether this is through concerts, tours, shows, movies or so many more, the suspense is crucial to creating a post-release audience.  

Key tactics include:

• Strategic leaks or previews (like teaser trailers or exclusive footage)
• Behind-the-scenes clips and celebrity interviews
• Merchandising and brand partnerships

From books such as Marvel’s graphic novels, to Frozen’s dresses and apparel for sale, to Toy Story’s action figure toys, brand partnerships and products greatly boost viewership and suspense. 

Behind-the-scenes clips also find their way into media and capture viewers attention. For example, in the 2016 film, Deadpool, test footage was leaked online. Fans instantly took interest and were eager to see more. Though this “leak’s” credit was never officially claimed, it may have worked in the studio’s favor. 

Relevence 

Capturing cultural and social relevance is also a critical part of how public relations connects to the entertainment industry. Trends, fashion, and media are constantly changing and it is important for artists, producers, and studios to stay up-to-date with their target audiences. 

How this looks in action:

• Strategic branding through logos, visuals, and themes
• Partnerships with trending influencers or movements
• Campaigns that reflect the moment

For example, we have seen this strategic branding with the release of the film Avatar and its immersive theater experience and environmental themes. 

Long Term Engagment 

Building long-term engagement can be challenging to do, but with the right public relations tactics, it can be done and achieved smoothly. 

Effective PR strategies include:

• Post-release interviews, reunions, and cast Q&As
• Ongoing social media interaction and community building
• Bonus content, retrospectives, and fan events

Capturing long term enagemnet is super important! Whether this is done through rewatching movies or shows because fans love them, or listening to an artists album after going to their concert, it creates a long lasting impact of brand, fan, and viewership loyalty. 

We have seen these methods through interviews with the cast after the show. This creates a bond with the viewers, the characters, and the actors that make fans fall in love with the show. 

Final Thoughts

Public relations is an incredibly important and strategic tool in the entertainment industry and is used more than people think. Next time you are anticipating the release of a film or concert sneak peeks, maybe you can notice some of these strategies.