The words a promotion runs on.

The name a film carries during production and early planning, before the title is locked or revealed. It can change; the campaign planning around it should not wait for it.

Why it matters. Everything in a first-look campaign points at a name. A working title lets the announcement, the first look and the calendar be planned while the final title is still being argued about.

When. From the moment a film is announced internally until the title reveal.

Film promotion On the runway

See also: Title reveal, First look

The moment the film's real title is made public, usually as a designed title card or a short video, often tied to an occasion such as a lead actor's birthday or a festival.

Why it matters. It is the first thing the audience can repeat. A title that lands becomes a hashtag; one that leaks becomes a rumour.

When. Pre-launch, typically between the announcement and the first look.

Film promotion On the runway

See also: Working title, First look

The first official image of the film or its lead, released as a still poster. One image, one mood, and the internet forms an opinion.

Why it matters. It sets the visual promise every later drop has to keep. A first look that says 'mass' cannot be followed by a teaser that says 'class' without losing people.

When. Pre-launch, well before the teaser; the runway places it around ten to twelve weeks out for a regional film.

Film promotion On the runway

See also: Motion poster, Mass, Class

The first look set in motion: a short animated version of the poster with sound, made for feeds rather than walls.

Why it matters. It buys a second wave of attention from the same image and gives creators something that moves. It is optional; if the teaser is close, it competes with it.

When. Pre-launch, after the first look and before the teaser.

Film promotion On the runway

See also: First look, Teaser and trailer

The teaser promises the film in under a minute without showing much; the trailer is the full pitch and the climax of the pre-release campaign.

Why it matters. The trailer is the one drop every channel is timed to: press, creators, outdoor and the pre-release event all point at it. A trailer uploaded quietly is a campaign spent quietly.

When. Launch phase; the runway puts the trailer about three weeks before release for most scales.

Film promotion On the runway In the diary

See also: Trailer launch, Creator promotion

Releasing the trailer as an event rather than an upload: a fixed time, media present, the cast in the room or on the stage, creators briefed in advance.

Why it matters. It concentrates the whole campaign's attention on one moment, and gives the press a story beyond 'trailer out'.

When. Launch phase, around the trailer drop.

Events and ground promotion On the runway

See also: Teaser and trailer, Press meet

Releasing a single from the film, usually as a lyric video first, ahead of the audio launch.

Why it matters. A song travels where a trailer cannot: reels, weddings, college festivals. A strong first single carries creators for weeks.

When. Launch phase; depends on the music more than on any rule.

Film promotion On the runway

See also: Audio launch, Creator promotion

A staged event where the film's music is released to an audience: songs performed, the cast and guests on stage, media invited, fans in the crowd.

Why it matters. It is the biggest room a film gets before the theatre. Done well, it produces a week of coverage and clips; done as a formality, it produces photographs.

When. Countdown phase, a few weeks before release, once the songs and the cast's dates are confirmed.

Events and ground promotion On the runway In the diary

See also: Pre-release event, Song release

The last big public event before release: stage, stars, a chief guest, media and fans, built for maximum buzz in the final week.

Why it matters. It is the campaign's closing argument, and the last chance to put the cast in front of a crowd before the first show.

When. The week before release.

Events and ground promotion On the runway In the diary

See also: Audio launch, Release week

A scheduled session where the cast and makers meet journalists, TV crews and portals together, usually tied to a drop or an event.

Why it matters. One hour in one room can become a week of coverage across print, TV and portals, if there is a story to carry.

When. Countdown phase; interviews and press meets run as a window, not a single day.

Media, PR and creators On the runway In the diary

See also: Paid PR and earned PR, Trailer launch

Earned PR is coverage a story wins on its own; paid PR is promotional content placed for a fee and, by law and by portal policy, marked as such. Both exist in film promotion; the honest campaign knows which is which.

Why it matters. Mixing them up costs credibility with journalists and audiences alike. Planning them separately keeps the earned coverage clean.

When. Across the campaign, heaviest in the countdown phase.

Media, PR and creators On the runway

See also: Press meet, Creator promotion

Campaigns run through content creators rather than media houses: trailer reactions, reels, YouTube integrations and Instagram collaborations, briefed and scheduled around the drops.

Why it matters. Conversations now begin in feeds. Creators need the trailer before it drops, not after; a structured brief beats random messages.

When. Countdown phase, from the trailer to release week.

Media, PR and creators On the runway

See also: Paid PR and earned PR, Teaser and trailer

Taking the cast and the film to people physically: college tours, mall promotions, roadshows, city tours, theatre visits and fan meets.

Why it matters. A crowd that has met the hero brings friends to the first show, and the clips feed the digital campaign.

When. Countdown phase and release week; cities picked by the release strategy.

Events and ground promotion On the runway In the diary

See also: Single screen, Outdoor publicity

Hoardings, bus and auto branding, pole kiosks, theatre facades, malls and metro placements.

Why it matters. It tells a city the film is coming without asking anyone to open an app. It only works when it is planned by city and theatre around a fixed date.

When. Countdown phase, once the release date and the theatre list are locked.

Film promotion On the runway In the diary

See also: Ground promotion, Single screen

Trade shorthand for a film, a hero or a moment built for the widest audience: heightened action, heroism, music and spectacle. Also the energy a campaign leans into.

Why it matters. Whether a film is positioned mass or class decides the first look, the songs, the events and the cities. Getting it wrong early is expensive to correct later.

When. From positioning onwards; it shapes every drop.

Film promotion On the runway

See also: Class, Hungama

The counterpart to mass: films and moments positioned for a more selective, often urban audience, with restraint in tone and design.

Why it matters. Class positioning changes the media mix, the venues and the visual language; it does not mean a smaller campaign, only a different one.

When. From positioning onwards.

Film promotion On the runway

See also: Mass, Multiplex

Noise, celebration, commotion: the atmosphere a mass campaign wants in a city in release week.

Why it matters. Hungama is the visible sign that a campaign is working on the ground; it is planned, not hoped for.

When. Release week.

Events and ground promotion On the runway In the diary

See also: Mass, Housefull

A standalone cinema with one screen, often with a large capacity and a loud, celebratory audience. The traditional home of mass cinema, cutouts and first-day-first-show culture.

Why it matters. Single screens are where a campaign's ground work is seen: standees, facades, fan celebrations. They reward films that give audiences a reason to show up together.

When. Release week planning and outdoor placement.

Events and ground promotion On the runway In the diary

See also: Multiplex, Outdoor publicity

A cinema complex with several screens, typically inside a mall, with a more urban, family and class-leaning audience and more shows per day.

Why it matters. Multiplex audiences discover films through digital feeds and reviews more than through hoardings, so the campaign mix shifts accordingly.

When. Release planning and digital emphasis.

Film promotion On the runway

See also: Single screen, Class

The five days before the first show, when every channel runs at once: interviews, cast appearances, digital, outdoor, press, theatre visits.

Why it matters. It is where a coordinated plan and seven separate vendors look most different. The diary on this site shows the same week both ways.

When. The final week.

Film promotion On the runway In the diary

See also: Housefull, Post-release buzz

A sold-out show; the board a single screen puts up when no seats are left.

Why it matters. A photograph of a housefull board is the oldest promotional asset in Indian cinema, and it still travels. It is a result, never a promise.

When. Release week.

Events and ground promotion On the runway

See also: Hungama, Single screen

Keeping the conversation alive after the first weekend: audience reactions, success meets, thank-you events, second-week content.

Why it matters. A film's second weekend is decided by the conversation in its first; going silent on Saturday hands the week to the next release.

When. After release, typically the first three weeks.

Film promotion On the runway

See also: Release week

On a film set, the daily schedule telling everyone where to be and when. On this site, the form a producer sends the desk to start a conversation.

Why it matters. A campaign starts the way a shoot does: with one sheet everyone can read.

When. Whenever you are ready to talk.

Film promotion

See also: Working title