In television and
motion picture
A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, since ...
s, a tentpole or tent-pole is a program or film that supports the financial performance of a film studio, television network, or cinema chain. It is an analogy for the way a strong central pole provides a stable structure to a tent. A tent-pole film may be expected to support the sale of
tie-in
A tie-in work is a work of fiction or other product based on a media property such as a film, video game, television series, board game, website, role-playing game or literary property. Tie-ins are authorized by the owners of the original proper ...
merchandise.
Types
In the film industry, ''tent-poles'' are sometimes widely released initial offerings in a string of releases and are expected by studios to turn a profit in a short period of time. Such programming is often accompanied by larger budgets and heavy promotion. A tentpole movie, for example, is a film that is expected to support a wide range of ancillary tie-in products such as toys and games.
Examples
An example of this strategy in television is to schedule a popular
television program
A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via Terrestrial television, over-the-air, Satellite television, satellite, and cable te ...
alongside new or unknown programming, in an attempt to keep
audience
An audience is a group of people who participate in a show or encounter a work of art, literature (in which they are called "readers"), theatre, music (in which they are called "listeners"), video games (in which they are called "players"), or ...
viewers watching after the flagship program is over; a prominent example is the long-running ''
Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...
'' series.
Roseanne Barr
Roseanne Cherrie Barr (born November 3, 1952), also known mononymously as Roseanne, is an American actress, comedian, writer, and producer. She began her career in stand-up comedy before gaining acclaim in the television sitcom ''Roseanne'' (19 ...
and her then-husband
Tom Arnold used the success of Barr's hit sitcom ''
Roseanne
''Roseanne'' is an American television sitcom created by Matt Williams (producer), Matt Williams that originally aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from October 18, 1988, to May 20, 1997, and briefly revived from March 27, 2018, to May ...
'' to promote Arnold's sitcom ''
The Jackie Thomas Show
''The Jackie Thomas Show'' is an American sitcom that aired on the ABC network from December 1992 to March 1993. The series received widespread attention due to its creators Roseanne Arnold, then starring in the fifth season of her comedy ''Ros ...
'', going so far as to remove the commercial break between shows to dissuade viewers from changing the channel (a
hot switch In broadcast programming, a hot switch or hotswitching is where the ending of one television show leads directly into the start of the show in the next time slot without a television commercial break. The concept is used to reduce the chances that p ...
). The tactic was successful, but complaints from local affiliates and public feuding between the Arnolds and
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting
* Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
led to the latter show's end, by mutual decision, after one season. A related concept is the
hammock
A hammock, from Spanish , borrowed from Taíno language, Taíno and Arawak language, Arawak , is a sling made of fabric, rope, or netting, suspended between two or more points, used for swing (seat), swinging, sleeping, or Human relaxation, res ...
: if a network has two tent-pole series, it can boost the performance of a weak or emerging show by inserting it in the schedule between the two tent-poles.
See also
*
Aftershow
An aftershow or after-show is a genre of television talk show whose topic is another television program. An aftershow is typically broadcast immediately after a new episode of its corresponding program, to help retain the audience, and to provide a ...
*
Audience flow
Audience flow describes how people move through media offerings in a temporal sequence. Stable patterns of audience flow were first identified in the early twentieth century when radio broadcasters noticed the tendency of audiences to stay tuned t ...
*
Blockbuster (entertainment)
A blockbuster is a work of entertainment—typically used to describe a feature film produced by a major film studios, but also other media—that is highly popular and financially successful. The term has also come to refer to any large-budget p ...
*
Event movie
Event may refer to:
Gatherings of people
* Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion
* Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest
* Event management, the organization of ev ...
*
Four-quadrant movie
In the Hollywood movie industry, a four-quadrant movie is one which appeals to all four major demographic "quadrants" of the movie-going audience: both male and female, and both over and under 25 years of age.
Criteria
Films are generally aime ...
*
List of highest-grossing films
Films generate income from several revenue streams, including movie theater, theatrical exhibition, home video, Broadcasting rights, television broadcast rights, and merchandising. However, theatrical box office, box-office earnings are the p ...
References
{{reflist
Film and video terminology
Television terminology