‘ROBOTS’ SPRING TO LIFE ON COMPUTER DESKTOPS!

Before leaping to the silver screen on March 11th, Twentieth Century Fox International’s ROBOTS are animating personal computer desktops with characters from the film. Created and developed for Fox International by Lawton eMarketing, these dimensional "screen buddies", or avatars, utilise the most advanced and sophisticated digital technology. On 9th March, the avatars will be launched in 20 countries around the world, the largest localization effort of any desktop buddy program of this kind.

By simply downloading the screen buddies from the ROBOTS website (www.robotsmovie.com), the two main characters, Rodney Copperbottom and Fender, come to life. The characters perform a number of unique actions when the user right-clicks on them and selects from a drop-down menu. They even notify the user when e-mail arrives. Through a desktop communication device, users will receive special updates about the film and the ROBOTS console game.

The avatar program was created through a software application called AdMonkey, an in-depth content management system designed by Lawton. The application allows each country to localise information and push news and assets through the application independently, creating a truly "glocalised" communication tool.


Bettina Sherick, Vice President of Online and Wireless Marketing at Twentieth Century Fox International, commented, "Through these avatars, we are able to introduce the ROBOTS characters, the film and console game to a large international audience in a clever and innovative way. The AdMonkey technology with its 3-D capacity, versatility and ability to localize on a mass level is a perfect fit for our film."

Lawton eMarketing’s head of entertainment, Mark Cox, added, "Our ROBOTS application is one of our most adventurous projects to date, pushing the boundaries of creativity, while maintaining a solid marketing platform. We have enjoyed collaborating with Twentieth Century Fox International on this exciting project and look forward to working with the studio on future titles."

Twentieth Century Fox and Academy Award® winning director Chris Wedge, who last joined forces on the blockbuster animated hit ICE AGE, now team to create another visually spectacular, three-dimensional world, with an all-star, award-winning cast, in ROBOTS. Beyond the scope, freshness and vibrancy of an incredible world populated solely by mechanical beings, Wedge and his team are creating memorable robots, each with "his" / "her" own distinct personality. The result is a timeless tale that pushes the boundaries of animation, while introducing characters rich with whimsy, heart and soul.

Notes to editor
Lawton eMarketing is a leading UK e-marketing agency, providing digital marketing strategy and creative solutions to the entertainment, travel, retail, FMCG & technology sectors.
Twentieth Century Fox International is a unit of Fox Filmed Entertainment, a segment of Fox Entertainment Group.