Founded in 2018 in Sheridan, Wyoming, the WYO Film Festival has become one of the state’s leading venues for independent film. Designed as an intimate, accessible experience, the festival fosters meaningful connections between filmmakers and audiences over three days of screenings and discussions. Unlike traditional festivals with red carpets and exclusive galas, WYO focuses on celebrating film in a relaxed, engaging atmosphere.

By 2021, the festival faced a major challenge: how to reinvigorate interest in a live film event after the pandemic had upended the live events industry, leaving audiences fatigued by months of at-home streaming. The festival needed a creative and compelling campaign to remind attendees of the magic of in-person cinema and to drive engagement and attendance.

Outside Voice has been a proud partner of the WYO Film Festival since its inception, managing various marketing, advertising, and communications aspects of the annual event. In 2020, we expanded our role to oversee all aspects of the festival’s promotional efforts, and 2021 presented the most significant challenge yet.

To combat audience fatigue and reignite excitement, we developed the “Festival You’ve Been Training For” campaign. This integrated marketing initiative leaned into humor and relatability, framing the return to the theater as the culmination of everyone’s pandemic movie-watching marathons.

The campaign included:

• Traditional Media: Print ads and posters in local and regional outlets to capture the attention of film lovers.
• Digital Advertising: Targeted social media ads, email campaigns, and partnerships to drive ticket sales.
• Engaging Content: Videos and graphics that played up the campaign’s humor, encouraging audiences to reclaim the joy of experiencing films together.