WALL-E marketing started on November 3rd, Culture Day, a national holiday in Japan and these commercials were showing on that day.
House Foods Corp. Curry TV commercial. Press the play button to start the commercial. housefoods.jp/products/tvcm/tvcm … 11_02.html
House Cream Stew TV commercial. Press the play button to start the commercial. housefoods.jp/products/tvcm/tvcm … 11_03.html
WALL-E movie box office openings in Japan compared to other Pixar movies. WALL-E is ranked third. The Incredibles is first and Finding Nemo second. wdshe.jp/disney/news/detail.jsp?id=1003
That’s all of the marketing I know for WALL-E before December 5th.
I’m really pleased to hear that WALL-E is doing well in Japan, Rey. I guess on the one hand, I was quite surprised to hear how well the merchandising is going, though on the other, now that I think about it, it’s sort of obvious that it would do well! Coming third for Pixar box office openings is pretty good, especially considering what powerhouses both The Incredibles and Finding Nemo were. Thanks for the interesting links! The varying distribution and advertising worldwide is probably one of the most fascinating things outside the actual creation of the films.
Now I’m hooked on that WALL-E Pinball game, so excuse me…
Thank you for all of those links, Rey! OMGGGG Japanese WALL•E merchandise… the watch, backpack, tissue box cover, and iPod touch. wants And that snowman WEVE in the curry commercial, how cute. It never ceases to amaze me how marketing people can connect seemingly opposite things, such as curry and robots.
It seems as if Japan is getting The Pixar Story and The Pixar Short Films: Volume 1 as a combo, rather than TPS being put onto the WALL•E DVD release.
I, too, would love to know exactly how they dealt with WALL•E and EVE’s voices and words with the Japanese release. Seeing as dialogue (because there is s little of it within the first 1/3 of it) and sound carries a lot of the movie, plus the fact that WALL•E’s voice is not a straight voice acting gig, the words were said by Ben Burtt then manipulated just so, unless they did that with the Japanese voice actors… Oh, I remember now. I saw on the Japanese version of the trailer. When EVE says “directive”, they have her voice saying it, but a subtitle underneath. The humans, I wonder if they were dubbed. I would guess so.
info.movies.yahoo.co.jp/userrevi … /id329124/ miafka, here are Yahoo Japan reviews of WALL-E. Click on the title of the article and you will see the authors full review. Cut and paste to one of the translators below. The translators are ok, you get the gist of the review.
The third weekend, December 20th and 21st, was brutal on WALL-E. It had to fight off six new movies in its third weekend, but still held on in the top two spots. movie.auone.jp/ja/sv/au/MV_Ranki … 370261604/
And, school wasn’t out for winter yet. Kids here had to go to school half a day on Monday the 22nd, but when school was out WALL-E went back up to be number one by its fourth weekend the 27th and 28th.
Whole families watched WALL-E, including grandparents. I heard from my friend. Can you imagine that?
Sorry for not posting anything sooner, but my computer screen blanked out on Christmas Day in the morning. I just bought a new HD screen so I’m short on funds and I won’t be watching WALL-E in Japanese. Sorry guys.
Rey,
Thanks very much for all those additional links and information! Sorry I haven’t replied, I just haven’t been on lately with the holidays and such, but they’re much appriciated! Thanks again! And if you find some funds and change your mind and see it in Japanese, let us know how it was, and how much (if at all) they altered Wall-E’s or Eve’s voice.
This is a little out of date now (Dec 29th), but from Variety Asia:
(when they say “fourth frame” they mean “fourth week”):
"Overall, business for animated fare was brisk. Universal’s “The Tale of Despereaux” chipped in with a moderate $5 million at 1,815 in 10 markets, the studio opting for a staggered release over the next four months. The fourth frame of Disney’s “Wall-E” led in Japan with $2.1 million, pushing foreign cume to $289.5 million. "
Here’s another, from Hollywoord Reporter (also Dec 29th):
“Disney/Pixar’s “WALL-E,” holding strong in Japan for four weeks in a row, tallied $2.1 million from 454 screens for a market cume of $24.2 million and an overall gross of $289.4 million.”
Currently, Wall-e has taken in $32.5 million in Japan according to Box office mojo, which puts the worldwide box office tally at just over $522 million. Expect to see another $5-10 million added to this grand total and then decide for yourself if this movie is a hit.
WALL-E has been number one in four of the last five weekends in Japan. In the third weekend, it was in second, but it went back up to number one for two more weekends.
In Japan, we have a three day weekend coming up and with at least three new movies coming out. All these new movies are not being advertised. This weekend coming up is officially the last weekend for winter break in Japan. Let see if WALL-E is number one again this weekend.
WALL-E was number one again in its sixth weekend of January 10th～11th. eiga.com/ranking/
WALL-E beat off a new movie this weekend Che: Part One
Next weekend, WALL-E movie showings will be reduced from five to three movie showings on Saturday and Sunday due to five new movies, one of which is the new Bond movie Quantum of Solace.
A lot of students will be taking tests from now until the end of January, so I don’t know how WALL-E will do in the next two weekends.
WALL-E did dominate the winter break here in Japan from December 22nd through January 12th and WALL-E topped Tinker Bell during the same winter break. Sorry Tink.
www.boxofficemojo.com reports that Wall-e took in $1.8 million over the two day weekend in Japan with a grand total of $38.3 million in that country. Wall-e has cumed $528.6 million worldwide, thus far.
Coming third for Pixar box office openings is pretty good, especially considering what powerhouses both 
