When you think of movie studios, you probably think of the giants like Disney, Universal, 20th Century Fox and Paramount. Those are the ones churning out the giant blockbusters and opening insane theme parks.
But movie buffs are probably familiar with A24, the studio quietly producing some of the most critically acclaimed indie flicks of the last few years. They’ve been responsible for celebrated films like “Room,” “Moonlight,” Lady Bird” and way more. They’ve also been quietly running the best movie merchandise store in the business.
Creativity is truly the name of the game. Yes, anyone can make a T-shirt or poster for a movie. A24 has been going a step further, tying in small details or using thematic aspects of the movie, and adapting it into a creative item.
Remember in “Lady Bird” how the titular character frequently gets frustrated with her mother and/or teachers for not calling her that? Well, A24 is selling a “Call Me Lady Bird Like You Said You Would” name tag patch.
Fans can also get their hands on the hilarious “Lady Bird for President” posters she used in her campaign for class president and plaster them all over their own school/home/office/city.
Did you feel the nostalgia of your skateboarding youth from watching “Mid90s?” Well, then this “Mid90s” finger skateboard is perfect for you.
Were you eternally freaked out by the horrifying yet oddly familiar grandmother of “Hereditary”? Then you’ll love looking at this “Evil Grandmas” wall calendar.
For those of us who still celebrate the beauty of DIY publications and print journalism, A24 is selling ‘zines put together by the likes of Bo Burnham, John Early and James Franco, some of its stable of directors.
And, for the fan who just loves A24 and everything it stands for, you can get much more than just T-shirts (which they have), with the studio offering beach towels, socks, hats and more.
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again about a million more times: In today’s saturated e-commerce and promotional world, you have to keep finding ways to stand out. Yes, the standards like T-shirts and hats are always going to be popular, but to reach that next step of merch success, you need to give people a reason to say, “Oh, wow, that’s really cool”—to feel a connection to the item.
Think about Weezer’s “Black Market.” As we’ve said on the podcast, we’re vocally against anything Weezer has done since the Green album (“Maladroit” for me, though), but we could not sing the band’s praises enough about their merchandise. No matter what you think of any song they’ve made following “Island in the Sun,” you can’t knock the hustle.
