“Red Circle” Is Changing the Script on Film Marketing

In a film market saturated with dancing promotional videos and branded skits, “Red Circle” is playing a different game. Ahead of its June 6th release, the crime thriller isn’t just dropping trailers or dressing up for the gram, they’re  rewriting the rules of film promotion by focusing on something surprisingly rare: real connection.

Directed by Akay Mason and produced by Nora Awolowo and Abdul Tijani-Ahmed under Rixel Studios, “Red Circle” leans on the power of intimacy and authenticity. One of their most striking moves? Reaching out to the cast’s loved ones—friends, family, longtime supporters—to create heartfelt video messages. These moments were filmed in advance and used to surprise the actors during promo shoots, capturing raw, unscripted reactions. The result feels more like a documentary of personal journeys than a typical marketing push.

The visuals are just as intentional. Cast members appear in agbadas, batik prints, velvet pieces, and lace gowns—all featuring touches of red. It’s not just for aesthetic; the wardrobe choices mirror the film’s name, subtly hinting at thef meaning in the story and the idea of a symbolic circle, both personal and political.

The plot follows investigative journalist Fikayo Holloway, played by Folu Storms, as she digs into a Lagos-based crime syndicate. Alongside her is a packed ensemble—Bukky Wright, Timini Egbuson, Tobi Bakre, Lateef Adedimeji, Femi Branch, and Omowunmi Dada—each of whom has become part of a tightly coordinated rollout that treats promotion as storytelling in its own right.

In a conversation with The Nollywood Reporter, co-producer Nora Awolowo breaks down how their marketing strategy took shape, and why treating the team like family wasn’t just a nice touch—it was the plan.

TNR: What was the initial vision for the marketing campaign and how did you bring it to life?

Nora Awolowo: First of all, the cinema wasn’t our plan but for us, once we knew that that was the route we were going to take, it meant we needed to leverage on what our pros and cons were, how do we leverage on our strengths and weaknesses and try to balance it and that was why we decided to go this route with our marketing. We were able to break down the team basically into different departments putting the crew into the teams based on their strengths and what they are good at. It’s like I have this great idea, here is my reference and let’s pull up every other person to help bring the vision to life then share with the team. And now I have different people on the teams whose jobs are different and they just help to bring those ideas to life.

Were there any unconventional or experimental approaches that have paid off in a big way?

I think the whole marketing strategy which is humanizing the actors is paying off. Like I told my team members as much as they can hear it that this is my favorite part of it. Even before the idea came, there was that light bulb moment because the idea is such a great one, I really liked it and I knew it is what the cast will be surprised about. And I was able to bring the idea to life. At the end of the day, people just want to feel seen, which was the idea. As much as you are promoting this film, we need to make these actors feel seen. It is more than just the work but also appreciating the work they put in, celebrating their journeys all through. Maybe because I have a bias to this particular campaign called “Letter from your circle,”  because we are trying to humanize them which made it special to me and I think for me it is just to also emotionally connect to the audience.

When the first letter came out, the feedback I got was that people were emotional, some were even moved to tears. Seeing the joy and appreciation from them and expressions on their faces was priceless. For me, it is also everything we have done that has trickled down to this point with every small promotion we have done from the photoshoot, announcement videos, cast reveal, to the one where we announced our cinema dates taking one of our cast members (Mike Afolarin) to Ibadan to shoot, to the Red Circle Hotline, where the cast called audiences on Whatsapp, to the Marie Claire shoot with the Omawunmi Dada and Folu Storms trying to explore their bonding and friendship. Then the circle membership card was very revolutionary  because everyone started jumping on it. Some people were very curious about it so it made it seem family-like.  Now it isn’t just about the film but the community of every person that is involved and joins the campaign. I have even gotten random messages from people on social media thanking me for making the cast feel seen. That’s why we do the work to be honest, because at the end of the day, the storytelling counts which people see and appreciate.

What platforms or channels were most effective in driving awareness and engagement?

To be honest, we have tried to see how to balance all the sides because every social media has its own strengths. I am very good with X (formerly Twitter), while I use Instagram as my visual portfolio but X is very chatty so I usually leverage on it. Now we are just trying to balance all the social media networks. We have even tried to see how we will leverage TikTok by using the cast and influencers that are very familiar and popular on the app. We also have Facebook in our sights trying to see which communities we can talk to.  We know that we have X on lock in terms of pushing conversations because we have a community of people there already. We also try to carry our crew members along because we know that they kind of have more reach. It’s like when a number of smaller accounts tweet about something that is more reliable than when a big account does.

We try to cover all the ends that we can, but my first point of contact is X then Instagram. What we found interesting is random Youtube accounts putting our poster on their videos just to get engagements for their accounts. I have realized that there is an interest somewhere for people to put our poster on their pages in order to drive engagements. It is left for us to know how these will convert.

What creative choices in marketing have helped the film stand out from competitors?

For us, we have tried to leverage the name alone in our marketing and creative materials. Our designs are one of the best to come out in the industry so far. Just with the way we branded the film as well, when you see red, it is almost a psychological thing. Someone made a tweet that said they saw five red cars in succession, and they thought about “Red Circle” so we have tried to make our marketing very psychological so that when you see red, you know it’s the “Red Circle.” Even when you see a circle, you try to connect it back to us and that’s why it is quite interesting that you may see red in another film and assume it is us if you are not careful.

Our branding is very important because I take it very seriously, visual designs are very psychological and it even influences decisions we make. Due to the fact that I am passionate about it, I try to take content that counts as quality and quality for me aside from the storytelling is also the branding. I want to sit through good and quality content and I make sure that it is what I want to watch that is going out. That’s for all our creative materials, down to the website which is standing out for me. Also celebrating our crew, they are the backbone of the project, so we have tried to carry them along just like the actors. The cast and crew has been a core reason why the whole project is a success and it is very important in the way we marketed the film, even the way we will carry the audiences along in June will stand out. I think it is quite interesting to see how that turns out.

Why is it so important to have someone who is knowledgeable about marketing on our team as a filmmaker?

For me, I know what I want. I am not an expert and I don’t have a marketing agency, I just know this is the kind of thing I want to see and from other people’s teams if they were the owners of the “Red Circle” project. So I try to imbibe that culture on all of our projects. However, I feel it is important for filmmakers to have people who understand marketing because we were able to get different marketing people on board who understood marketing and PR to amplify the creativity.

It is nice to have the designs and all but once you don’t have someone to amplify it, it just dies slowly. Nobody is watching a successful film that is just in their hard drive, it is when people see it that they will deem it successful. So I will say, have good branding for your project because that alone also captures it because people want to watch quality stuff. Apart from quality, also make sure that the product is bankable. For example, before we decided to go all out on the marketing, one of the things I made sure we did was having a pre— screening for both the actors and investors, just to get feedback from them to know that the project is actually worth it. It was very risky because some may watch it and not like it, then again it is easier to sell a product you like and trust, which is what happened with “Red Circle.”

We just wanted to gain their trust and confidence in the project with the pre— screening and after that, we started pitching our ideas to them and it was easy for them to be on board with it. As much as you have fancy branding, make sure that the product matches the branding. It is a nice balance when you have great marketing, a quality storyline and people actually like your film. There are marketing companies that specialize in these things though. The most interesting thing about marketing is there are some ideas you write down and think they will do very well but then you post a random thing and that is getting engagements.

What would you replicate or improve in future projects?

A part of me feels like I don’t want to do this long stretch of marketing anymore, it is quite long and grueling. We have been on this thing for a long time, trying to keep the morale for all the team members. It has been a long campaign, I am just happy that it is converting the way we want. Maybe if I had a bigger budget to make it up, I would try again. Next time, I will be sure that there is sufficient budget to backup all our exciting ideas in my next project. However, what works on “Red Circle” might not work for other films.

What advice would you give to other filmmakers aiming to create buzz worthy film campaigns like this?

Follow your instincts, that is very important. There will be a lot of background noise but just follow your instincts and what works for you. Leverage on your strengths and do what you will be comfortable doing. One of my strengths is being a community person and I tried to leverage on it more. Listen to people with valuable experience and advice. Build your audience for yourself, stick to what you want your audience to know you for and exciting things can come out of that.

What are your thoughts on using content creators and influencers to promote your film?

You might see me use them as well. It just depends on the type and style of the influencers you use because everybody uses influencers and content creators in and out of their films. Try to balance the audience, your storytelling and communication style for the project. I don’t think using content creators and influencers is bad but just balance it with what you want your film to be known for i.e the legacy for your film at the end of the day. The way you market comedy is different from how you market thrillers or drama and if you are using influencers just make sure they connect to the story you are trying to tell in the film.