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David Herrin

Head of Content Analytics at United Talent Agency

David Herrin is a passionate professional with an extensive background in data-driven research analysis and insights for the entertainment industry.

His journey began with a focus on extracting meaning from Big Data but has evolved to studying shifts in consumer behaviors and emerging trends in content consumption.

David has a history of success in the entertainment sector, showcasing expertise in digital strategy, quantitative and qualitative research, forecasting, predictive analytics, and competitive analysis.

He is the innovator behind PreAct, a tool developed to track social media impacts on new movie releases, which brought him recognition in the New York Times in 2011.

As a thought leader, David has shared his knowledge and insights as an adjunct professor at USC, panelist at various industry tradeshows and conferences, and guest speaker at USC and the Annenberg School for Communications and Journalism.

He describes himself as a 'data-wonk', storyteller, and an east-coaster, known for his determination, listening skills, ability to work individually or as part of a team.

David holds a Bachelor of Art (BA) in History from the University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) in Statistics from Villanova University.

Currently, David Herrin serves as the Head of Content Analytics at United Talent Agency, with previous roles as the Head of Research and Assistant at the same organization.

Highlights

Feb 5 · linkedin

Neon’s Brilliant Breadcrumb Campaign For LONGLEGS Proves That Sometimes Less Is More

We love it when studios take an unexpected approach to film marketing. It needs to be recognized and celebrated. To that end, Neon is doing a masterful job unspooling its July release LONGLEGS.

Twenty years ago, horror campaigns were fairly plug-and-play. Studios assumed that there was a finite audience for the genre, so there was no need to do long-lead marketing. Throw some money at it two weeks before release, and you’re good to go.

Thankfully, that’s not the case anymore. There is no better example of that than Neon’s deeply unsettling campaign for LONGLEGS. We mean that as a compliment.

So far it's paying off. At The Quorum, the four key tracking metrics show that the film is performing quite well. Interest in the movie is at 49%, which is easily above the average of 39% for other horror films at the same distance from release. It’s also well above the average in location and fee, meaning people are willing to pay to see the movie in a theater.

See full story here: https://bit.ly/3w5TznN

Sep 22 · linkedin

All Eyes On Disney This November

Is it possible that Disney had its Icarus moment in 2019? The Mouse House became the market share leader in 2016 and 2018 thanks to the 1-2-3 punch of Pixar, Star Wars, and Marvel. In 2019, Disney was so dominant domestically that, at 35%, its market share was more than double the next closest studio (Universal, 14%). Think about that. Essentially, one out of every three tickets sold was for a Disney film.

Then came Covid, and since then, the studio has been unable to find its footing. Or at least that’s the popular narrative.

There’s no denying that the once unflappable studio has made several unforced errors. Audiences completely abandoned STRANGE WORLD. INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY had a hard-to-justify budget near $300M. And THE HAUNTED MANSION was never going to work wedged between BARBIE the week before and TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM the week after. MANSION was unenviably tasked with peeling off the family audience from BARBIE before losing them a week later to the TURTLES.

With that in mind, Disney has the opportunity to change the narrative in the next few months. On the 20th Century Studios side, THE CREATOR is struggling with awareness, and THE BIKERIDERS looks to be a modest prestige play. But on the Disney side, it has two remaining 2023 films (THE MARVELS, WISH) and both offer the greatest opportunity for the studio to show it’s still got its mojo.

How are these two films tracking? Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/3ZwDcLB

David Herrin
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Location

Beverly Hills, California