This Hollywood studio is building a brand that stands for creativity

There has been a lot of chatter about A24’s takeover of the Cherry Lane Theatre. What might seem a quirky side project for the independent studio known for Lady Bird, Uncut Gems, and Hereditary is in reality a sharp, shrewd move in an industry facing disruption and streaming fatigue. Live performance is one of the few cultural experiences that can’t be automated, replicated, or played on demand. By stepping into theater, A24 is hedging against an AI-saturated future while also deepening its cultural footprint.

When the deal was first announced in late 2023, the scuttlebutt was rooted in practicalities. “It’s all about creative synergies,” was one refrain. “They’re diversifying their revenue streams to help offset the volatility of the film business.” “Theatre is more predictable than film.” “They can test out new stories in a low-risk environment.” These were all valid comments, sure, but then a close friend and accomplished film industry executive said something that really piqued my interest. “I wonder if they are further differentiating themselves in the market by building a futureproof brand.” Aha! Now we were getting somewhere.

A powerful brand

Coming from the branding world, I may be biased. Or perhaps just acutely aware when I sense a company doing something out of the norm. A24 certainly fits the bill. To start, the story it’s looking to tell, its role in the industry, and how it wishes to be perceived are markedly different from the other studios. As a result, it has a growing community of acolytes who identify with it and love it for that. These are trademarks of a powerful brand.

Most studios understand that their franchises are brands that they can build around, but when it comes to themselves, there is little to no attention given to an overarching narrative about what they stand for. To a branding person, this is perplexing. There is only one other industry that comes to mind that acts like this: Big Pharma. The drug companies seem to care that their patients know their drugs by name (think Lipitor, Prilosec, Viagra, Prozac) but less about how they themselves are perceived.

A24 is different. It is one of the very few in Hollywood that seems to be building a truly beloved brand. Do this simple test at home. When “A24” flashes up on the screen at the start of a movie, does it mean something to you? Does it affect your perception of what is to come? Like me, do you even get warm and giddy inside? 

Perhaps deep down, we all understand that A24 is all about exceptional, original, creative content. The questions one might ask are: How is it going about building a world-class brand? And why does that matter? 

Content is still king

One simple idea prevails in our fast-evolving world: Creativity wins. And increasingly so. The adage “content is king” has been floated around the entertainment industry over the years. And yet, for whatever reason, it seems to get forgotten with every new business cycle. In its place, I’m hearing things like, “We’re leveraging AI-driven audience analytics and predictive modeling algorithms to revolutionize content creation through real-time sentiment optimization” and “it’s a complete paradigm shift that democratizes storytelling via data-driven narrative matrices.” 

It’s becoming readily apparent that the general public doesn’t want an AI-generated model in their Guess ads, or a machine-generated song that Nirvana could have written. Audiences want to be surprised and delighted with new, fresh, exciting content. A24’s brand is synonymous with creativity, and younger movie lovers inherently understand this.

The brands that matter most today are those that are daring. Anyone who has seen On’s “Zone Dreamer” campaign with Zendaya floating around in outer space knows what I mean. The Big Five studios are publicly traded, and so by nature forced to drive revenue for shareholders and to mitigate risk (the yin to daring’s yang). Ironically though, the greatest historical payoffs in Hollywood, either on a % basis or through expansion into other verticals, are those that have taken calculated risks. A24 exemplifies that spirit today, with the Cherry Lane acquisition its latest proof point.

Daring creativity

Another key tenet to building a strong studio brand has to do with the same advice as I give to all the companies and institutions we work with: “Do what the robots can’t.” At its core, this is a euphemism for fostering human interaction. That matters especially now. The U.S. surgeon general recently declared a “loneliness epidemic.” In this context, A24 isn’t just buying a building, it’s investing in the kind of in-person experiences people are craving. 

Whether actively or intuitively, A24 is building an increasingly powerful brand that stands for daring creativity. Believed and beloved, it has established a cultlike following that subscribes to this world it’s creating, a world that gives it license to expand into any line of business that stands for the same. The Cherry Lane is a fascinating early move that insulates the company from a future saturated with AI.

The question is whether others will follow suit. Will studios also see an opportunity to congregate people, perhaps by incorporating next-generation movie theater experiences into their businesses? Could they blend hospitality and entertainment through partnerships that deliver immersive venues? The door is open . . . and A24 is first through it.

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