On the mainstream media across the ocean, due to certain censorship restrictions, Warner Bros.' promotion could not exert full force. However, on the freer internet, there was still room for maneuver, and Warner Bros., having developed the Chinese market for many years, gradually abandoned some promotional strategies suitable for North America but inappropriate for this market, beginning to formulate more targeted plans.
Besides stirring attention from Chinese media through online hype, another important promotional approach by Warner Greater China was to strategically bring Batman closer to Chinese fans.
Distance can sometimes create beauty, but more often it causes estrangement; professional marketing personnel are well aware of this.
At the end of 2012, Warner Bros. officially released the first Chinese poster for The Dark Knight Rises. On the poster, Batman and Bane appeared poised, as if ready to clash at any moment.
Simultaneously, China Film Group and Warner Bros. announced that the film, jointly funded by the two companies, would premiere in China on schedule in early May next year.
At the same time, a letter from an ordinary Chinese fan to Warner Bros. spread widely across Greater China's internet.
"Last night, I finally saw the giant poster for The Dark Knight Rises, and the stone in my heart finally fell. After all, countless films have been canceled before release, which left our viewing experience lagging ten years behind. Some foreign media unreservedly compared Duke's three Batman films to the contemporary Godfather trilogy—I think this is no exaggeration. The Dark Knight Rises is bound to be a feast, not to be missed!"
"Several times I tried to write something about my beloved Dark Knight, but I gave up because I knew that expressing myself in less than thousands of words would not suffice, and it would be exhausting. So I didn't write—it's a kind of relaxed pleasure. Here, I'm just casually chatting."
"Anything produced by Duke is bound to be a masterpiece; this is the conscious realization formed by fans after years of watching his films."
"I like Duke because I like his films. He is a thoughtful person, doing what he loves and sticking to his own views. Without a doubt, his Dark Knight is the pinnacle of cinema, a new benchmark for commercial films. For many, seeing it for the first time is shocking and indescribable, followed by repeated viewings. Every time, I am struck by a layer of brilliance—shocked by Heath Ledger's Joker performance, impressed by the clever plot, swayed by Hans Zimmer's music, moved by the moral debate between justice and evil, touched by the goodness of citizens versus villains; finally, deeply moved by the enormous information hidden in each line of dialogue, and the meaning conveyed in every action and glance…"
"All of these are gifts from Duke and his creative team. Even after watching once, we can't appreciate everything, but we always find reasons to revisit. This is a good film."
"A good film gives you shock and viewing surprises from every aspect, like a galaxy, with each star shining brightly. Discover one, then another draws your attention; Duke Rosenberg is always the brightest one."
"The Dark Knight Rises premieres in early May, and you must see it in theaters. It's a feast! Duke Rosenberg will bring a unique viewing experience! So get ready to experience a crazy journey with a commercial blockbuster!"
While building momentum for The Dark Knight Rises, Warner Greater China also collaborated with Lucasfilm to lay the groundwork for popularizing Warner Bros.' upcoming Star Wars releases.
Yes, the most basic popularization work.
When Kathleen Kennedy and Jamie Johnson first visited China, Duke explicitly instructed them not to overestimate Star Wars' influence in the Chinese market. To achieve commercial success in the future, promotion had to start from the very basics.
The original Star Wars films were not released in Chinese cinemas. The first Star Wars premiered in 1977, and the original trilogy did not screen in Chinese cinemas until June 2015. Although various forms of piracy existed, the cultural impact of Star Wars had never truly penetrated the country.
For example, the most important element in Star Wars—the lightsaber—few Chinese fans could explain its origin. Even those with some knowledge knew only that it was a Jedi weapon.
Under Duke's direction, Lucasfilm reached agreements with multiple Chinese online platforms and state and local TV stations to grant three years of free broadcasting rights for the six Star Wars films, promoting the series' exposure and influence in China.
Additionally, multiple Star Wars-themed events were held consecutively, inviting numerous fans and well-known personalities.
On today's crucial online promotional platforms, the campaign started with the most basic Star Wars knowledge. For instance, Duke's official China website and the widely influential Time website for ordinary fans consecutively published articles explaining the origin of lightsabers and other Star Wars content.
Duke understood very well that no film becomes a hit without reason, nor would it naturally sell well without promotion.
An article titled "What is a Lightsaber in Star Wars?" appeared across numerous Chinese media and Greater China websites.
"In the films, a lightsaber consists of a hilt and a blade. The blade is not ordinary laser but a magnetically constrained plasma."
"Plasma is ubiquitous in space and is called the fourth state of matter beyond solid, liquid, and gas. Matter is made of molecules, molecules of atoms, and atoms contain nuclei and electrons. The solid, liquid, and gas states are determined by the distances between molecules. When matter is heated to sufficient temperature or affected by other factors, electrons with negative charge in atoms may detach from the nucleus, forming positively charged ions without electrons, negatively charged ions with extra electrons, and free negatively charged electrons—this is ionization. After ionization, positive and negative ions mix, move randomly, and collide, forming plasma."
"In outer space, many stars and other high-temperature celestial bodies continuously heat matter to produce plasma. Meanwhile, the boundless low-density space provides ions enough distance to move freely, preventing them from fully recombining into neutral particles due to excessive collisions. These factors result in abundant plasma throughout space."
"In the movie, the blade extends from the hilt and can also retract back into it. Why can plasma stretch and shape like this? Plasma consists of continuously moving charged ions and electrons. When charged particles move in a magnetic field, if not moving parallel, they are affected by the Lorentz force due to electromagnetic interaction, which changes their motion direction."
"In the absence of other forces, this results in a continuously rotating helical motion. Using a strong magnetic field, the charged particles can be constrained within a certain range. On the other hand, if a plasma mass moves strongly, and without external forces, the magnetic field within cannot leave the plasma—this is called magnetic freezing."
"In the movie, the lightsaber only consumes energy when the blade cuts through objects, making it an indestructible 'hot' blade. When not in contact with objects, it does not release heat, so ordinarily it is a 'cold' sword."
"In Star Wars, lightsabers can cut through anything, with nothing impervious except another lightsaber."
In short, to make the new Star Wars films popular in the Chinese market, thorough preparatory work had to be done.
Of course, Star Wars promotion was maintained within a certain scope; at this stage, the focus remained on The Dark Knight Rises.
In December, Duke led the entire crew to Chicago. In the first two Batman films, Gotham City was, in some ways, modeled on real-life Chicago, so it was only natural that The Dark Knight Rises was again filmed there.
The city is densely built, with many well-designed structures, including numerous modern buildings and over a hundred-year-old classic architecture. Almost anything could be filmed casually, and the city's clean architectural lines gave the final footage a strong sense of realism.
With municipal assistance, the crew began a two-week shoot in Chicago's commercial center, though many difficulties arose during filming.
To shoot this film, Duke, with help from Chicago City Hall, closed streets near the filming area. The city allowed the crew to film at night in the central business district but required safety precautions, and they did their best to ensure the crew's security.
Although Duke was very careful about safety, the Batmobile still had a minor accident.
When Gal Gadot's stunt double drove the Batmobile from an alley onto the street, the engine's massive ultrasonic waves shattered many windows of a nearby building.
Duke did not anticipate this, but the crew quickly brought in repair workers who restored every window within 24 hours.
Filming in Chicago continued until just before Christmas. When the holiday began, Duke gave the crew a long break and left Chicago himself to join his mother in New York's Upper East Side, reuniting with Scarlett Johansson, busy with her new film Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Rarely with the whole family together, they enjoyed a brief Christmas holiday.
The holiday lasted until the New Year. At the start of 2013, Duke returned to the crew, shuttling between New York and Pittsburgh for filming. Although his main focus was on his own film, events around him made it impossible to be completely at ease. For instance, James Franco called from Los Angeles, informing Duke that his project had essentially received Warner Bros. investment and that once his The Dark Knight Rises scenes were completed, he would move on to the new project.
Additionally, many entertainment reporters were keeping an eye on Duke, wanting both updates on The Dark Knight Rises and his opinions on the latest Oscar announcements.
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