R.I.P. Joseph Farrell

Legendary movie marketing innovator Joseph Farrell died this morning of natural causes. He was 76. Farrell is the former chairman and CEO of The National Research Group which quickly became the leading market research firm in the film industry, serving studios andfilmmakers and distributors worldwide. Among the services he introduced, now taken for granted by the film industry, are trackings, test screenings, trailer and TVspot testing and norms by quadrants and other socio-demographics analyses, and early warning forecasting of movies box office potential. In 2003 Farrell created FP Productions with a first-look deal at Disney where he was special advisor to the chairman. In 2009 FP Productions went indie and its feature films include Joy Full Noise to be released in January by Warner Bros, andThe Leonardo Job in development with Alcon Entertainment.Farrell continued as a marketing consultant to top executives at several major studios and investment banking groups.