Last week, Disney unveiled its upcoming slate of streaming and film projects at the D23 Expo in California. Asad Ayaz, chief brand officer of the company, spoke to Geetika Srivastava at a media roundtable about the company’s plans in India, current trends in consumption and the role of AI and data analytics in operations. Edited excerpts:
How are you trying to cultivate the Disney brand in the Indian market and what opportunity do you see here?
Recently, we have done some exciting, interesting and unique things in India for the marketing of our recent releases Deadpool and Inside Out 2. The results have been amazing, with news spreading through word of mouth, and this showcases the level of the fandom in the country. Some of our greatest successes like Avengers End Game and Avatar: Way of Water have also performed sensationally here. So, especially with our movies, we see tremendous opportunities in the future.
In fact, I remember working with our India team on so many local activations — whether it is fan events, screenings or others — after we acquired Marvel. For Deadpool and Wolverine, we did some very unique activations in India with giant cardboard cutouts. We do some culturally authentic activations in promoting our movies and feedback on social media helps us understand what the fans want.
Moreover, I think there are certain movies that resonate in a bigger way with the audience — ones that have more cinematic appeal, more scope, and a certain type of production value that lends itself to the big screen. They appeal to a broad audience. I see tremendous opportunity there, and I also think there’s a big animation opportunity. It’s tremendously exciting.
What are some trends unique to India, and how have they helped you create hype around a project launch in the country?
What’s exciting to me is the Indian film industry, I think no one can surpass the quality and also the music and the fandom for certain celebrities. It is uniquely Indian. If you look at some of our casting in India, such as Shahrukh Khan and his son voicing for The Lion King, Queen Elsa and Princess Anna being voiced by Priyanka Chopra and Parineeti Chopra, they are iconic. They’re not just famous in India, they’re famous around the world, and there is such an incredible opportunity for us to engage with Indian audiences in a way. The local film industry is authentically engaged with Indian fans. Music, connections to the local industry, both digital and social, and all of technology is driving content consumption. India gives us a huge opportunity, so from that standpoint, it’s a very exciting market.
We have seen a number of local Indian adaptations of big Disney properties. What are the key considerations for Disney as it continues to expand its brand and streaming services in the country?
The creative leads that conversation globally. When you have a property — whether it be in a local language, a global one with nostalgic value, or which lends itself to a local adaptation — the company, especially the creative team, looks at the opportunity closely. We work with our local teams and take a lot of advice to understand what the opportunity is and what the fans want. This dictates the decision to do something creatively. The creative always drives these decisions.
What impact does artificial intelligence (AI) have on the industry?
AI can be used for operational efficiency, as many companies are trying. Disney has to be very thoughtful towards its use. I think it’s a tremendous efficiency opportunity but we have to be thoughtful with how we utilise that.
What are some changes you’ve observed in consumption patterns?
The biggest change is the massive shift to digital and social media. India has been ahead of that in a lot of ways, but this is something we’re seeing everywhere. It’s not just the younger generation anymore. There has been a shift towards consumption of short form and user-generated content. This provides an amazing marketing opportunity for us, and allows us to speak authentically and ensure that we’re present there as well. What that means for us is that we have to develop creatives that are bespoke not just to the local culture and the local taste, but also to the platforms themselves. I also think that people now have a huge amount of options — social, digital, streaming, television, watching movies in the theater or playing video games. There are a multitude of platforms and we have to do our storytelling and showcase our characters and IPs across all of them.
How are you leveraging data and analytics to your benefit?
There is a tremendous opportunity to be smarter and more insightful about what people want and how they respond based on data analytics. Because you have a direct relationship with a consumer digitally, you have an understanding of what they’re engaging with and how they’re feeling. The data aspect, especially for a marketing team, is fantastic because it allows us to customise, change course and give people something that they actually enjoy and engage with.