Magic Lantern: A new way of marketing books
Writer and director Inbal Diskin Sella combined her two loves and founded Magic Lantern – a studio that makes trailers for books. 'Our children and grandchildren will look for books and writers, and unfortunately, they're getting lost. In a trailer, they're available to millions of viewers'
In the US, trailers for books are old hat, and get hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube. But in Israel, the idea is relatively new, and it's hard to tell how effective it is compared to traditional marketing.
In recent years, young Israeli writers such as Yoav Avni and Assaf Gavron have created trailers for their books, but these have been mostly independent undertakings and not a professional genre with clear standards.
Related stories:
- Bill protecting authors' profits pushed forward
Now, writer and director Inbal Diskin Sella has founded Magic Lantern, the first Hebrew studio for book trailers.
The studio's first project was created for "For My Next Trick I'll Need Wings" by Alex Epstein, who has led the recent protest against marketing tactics in Israel's large bookstore chains and published the entire work on Facebook.
From the trailer for Epstein's book
"A recent study in the US showed that about 70% of youths choose books after seeing trailers… that means it's possible to attract kids to this world. Magic Lantern can help encourage reading," Diskin Sella tells Ynet.
When asked why books need trailers, Diskin Sella explains that they are natural and necessary in a multicultural, globalist world. When the trailer for Epstein's book went online, she says, a friend in Los Angeles saw it and sent it to a screenwriter. "In two hours, a group of about 100 people met Israel's Alex Epstein and connected to him, and soon we'll release an English version of the trailer," she says.
Inbal Diskin Sella (Photo: Magic Lantern Studio)
Diskin Sella explains that it's very important at Magic Lantern to respect the writer and the book. "We always read it and talk with the author and editor, so we can make the language of film fit each book," she notes.
When asked about the costs of production, Diskin Sella avoids quoting numbers. "I'm more of a creative person than business-oriented," she says of herself. "Of course, there is a price range, but I think that the cost will surprise some people."
"Thanks to today's technology, prices won't rise – the opposite. In any case, you can't ignore the reality – in the US and in Europe (book) trailers are the main marketing element, and often the only one."
