The Kung Fu Panda franchise produced by DreamWorks Animation is one of the most beloved animated film series of recent times. The first film, "Kung Fu Panda," was released in 2008, followed by "Kung Fu Panda 2" in 2011, and "Kung Fu Panda 3" in 2016. The series follows the adventures of a clumsy and lovable panda named Po, who aspires to become a kung fu master.

In this article, we have used Entropik’s Decode platform to break down the elements of testing a trailer ad before its launch and ensure it can be successful once it hits the market.

Brief overview of the Kung Fu Panda franchise

“‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ Trailer Racked Up 142 Million Views on Launch Day”- writes Variety- one of the biggest players in entertainment news. What is the secret behind making a successful trailer that manages to captivate audiences around the world?

The franchise has been well-received for several reasons:

Humor and Heartwarming Story: The films blend humor with a heartwarming story, making them appealing to both children and adults. Po's journey of self-discovery and growth resonates with audiences.

Visual Spectacle: The animation and visuals in the Kung Fu Panda series are praised for their quality and creativity. The action sequences, in particular, showcase impressive martial arts choreography.

Strong Character Development: The characters in the series are well-developed, each with their unique traits and personalities. Viewers connect with the diverse cast, including Po and the Furious Five, as they navigate their challenges.

Themes of Friendship and Determination: The films emphasize themes of friendship, determination, and believing in oneself. These positive messages contribute to the franchise's popularity.

With the much anticipated Kung Fu Panda 4 release date scheduled on the 8th of March this year, we have deployed our research platform Decode to run an analysis on the new movie's trailer.

Understanding the Survey Methodology

Trailers draw moviegoers in by creating awareness and interest by providing a preview of what is to come and persuading them to watch the full movie when it is released. This is why platforms like Decode are important. They help in testing trailers that resonate with the target audience by showing unbiased viewer thoughts and preferences. You can test multiple versions of the same trailer or test different elements of the content within the same trailer.

Decode is a consumer research platform with Insights AI technologies. Insights AI consists of tools and technologies like Facial Coding, Eye Tracking, and Voice Tonality, designed to interpret data and provide accurate and unbiased insights. 

Conducting a test on Decode involves setting up the test by uploading the trailer link on YouTube to the platform and adding a series of pre/post-survey questions. Once the test is launched, it is a simple matter of sharing the test link with the participants.

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Analyzing the Kung Fu Panda 4 Trailer

Enclosing the link to the Trailer Here: Kung Fu Panda 4 Trailer

The result of overall audience emotions after watching the video comes as no surprise. Almost 88% of the audience felt positive emotions keeping in line with the feel-good, comedic genre of the movie.

The analysis above is a result of the Facial Coding and Eye Tracking metrics used to provide insights into the audience attention and engagement scores of the trailer on a second-by-second basis. 

In the emotion analysis chart above, we can see the happy emotions peaking in the last few seconds providing a funny or happy ending to the trailer. Other emotions are on a comparatively less noticeable scale.

Let us look at some of the survey results from the tests:

‍Audience Familiarity: Over 94% of the respondents have watched the movie cementing the popularity of the series and its substantial fan base.

Expectations: Respondents are excited about different aspects of the movie, but over 72% of them were excited for the storyline of the previous movies to continue.

Trailer Rating: The ratings are generally positive, with over 76% having rated 5 stars for the trailer. 

Excitement Levels: In a question about whether respondents are more excited or less excited after seeing the trailer, over 61% responded their excitement levels have “increased a lot.”

Closing Thoughts

Overall, even though there a minority who did not love the trailer, it is safe to say the Kung Fu Panda series has a loyal consumer base who are eagerly awaiting the latest movie's release. The expectations and familiarity of the characters and plot stand out in the test, making the trailer easy to relate and connect with for the audiences involved. This includes a diverse target audience of kids and adults alike. 

Testing such trailers over the production period of storyboarding to the final launch ensures the content is in line with what the audience wants to see and consume. In addition to movie trailers, this also holds true for testing all sorts of creatives- be it static or dynamic. There is always a scope for improving your ads- no matter how good they are. 

“Never stop testing, and your advertising will never stop improving.”- David Ogilvy
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