BRIARPATCH

Briarpatch was a quirky modern take on a classic pulp-noir detective story – one where the characters, dialogue and atmosphere mattered as much as than plot. Our goal with this marketing campaign was to attract the large crime/procedural audience by leaning into the show’s main murder mystery, while using music, graphics and copy to convey the quirk and tone that set it apart from other shows – thus also appealing to viewers looking for something out of the ordinary.

For our first trailer, timed to announce its inclusion in the Toronto International Film Festival, we wanted a prestige-sell that highlighted the show’s auspices and star-power along with its quirky tone and cinematic visuals.

The residents of San Bonifaciao are a huge part part from your run-of-the-mill murder mystery. This promo shone a spotligh on those characters (and the familiar faces portraying them) – labeling each with a moniker seemingly ripped from the sort of old paperbacks that inspired the pulp-noir sensibilities of the series.

To appeal to crime/procedural fans, we dialed down the quirk a little and focused on the simple-to-understand story of a sister trying to solve her sister's murder.

The type treatment we developed for the campaign allowed us to convey the pulp sensibilities of the show through reviews and character quotes.

With limited series gaining popularity and viewers showing  hesitant to commit to an open-ended show, one of our marketing objectives was to make it clear that this  case would be solved and wrapped up within a single season.

So we wanted to convey to viewers that it was 10-episode limited event series, but using language that felt more at home in the world of the show. Which is how Briarpatch beame “A twisted tale in ten parts.”

To bring the pulp novel origins of our story full circle, we created illustrated character portraits and key art for use on social platforms.  

We even created a giveaway custom notebook made to look like an old weathered paperback.