Val Morgan Cinema and Kantar confirm Cinema’s strong impact in engaging youth audiences

AUCKLAND, Today: Val Morgan Cinema teamed up with Kantar to dive into Cinema’s role in reaching younger audiences, uncovering its unique ability to drive impact and efficiency in the media mix.

The study confirms Cinema’s power to boost incremental reach and deliver strong brand engagement, making it a valuable tool for marketers targeting high-value youth demographics.

Youth audiences are trendsetters today and economic drivers tomorrow. Building on the 2024 Famous study, Val Morgan Cinema uncovered another key insight—connecting with younger audiences is essential for brand growth.

Using ad equity data from Kantar’s Media Reactions 2024 report and cross-media analysis from Kantar LIFT+ campaign measurements, the study reaffirmed Cinema’s strength in engaging youth audiences.

Cinema ranks among the top media channels for advertising equity, resonating deeply with younger audiences and fostering positive brand perception, affinity, and long-term loyalty.

Cinema also delivers significant incremental reach:

• 44% beyond TV
• 31% beyond digital
• 18% beyond both TV and digital

“Youth audiences have been a bedrock of Cinema for many years. The channel offers brands something truly valuable for brands—it’s a curated, deeply engaging, immersive experience that has the highest level of ad equity, attention, and mental availability.” – Guy Burbidge

With just 6% of the budget, Cinema delivers 15% of campaign impact per person, proving its efficiency in driving results far beyond its budget share.

Sharon Hilton, Head of Media Insights at Kantar said, “The research was crucial in measuring and understanding campaign impact and ad equity perceptions amongst the GenZ cohort. The insights confirmed that Cinema is a powerful campaign driver.

“Audiences are immersed in a high-quality setting where brand messages can resonate – a catalyst for impactful storytelling and deep audience connections. In an era where engagement is increasingly fragmented, Cinema stands to deliver focused, distraction-free moments, ensuring that brand messages are not only seen but deeply felt, creating lasting impressions for GenZ.”

Guy Burbidge, Managing Director of Val Morgan Cinema, said, “Youth audiences have been a bedrock of Cinema for many years. The channel offers brands something truly valuable for brands—it’s a curated, deeply engaging, immersive experience that has the highest level of ad equity, attention, and mental availability. The power of the big screen translates into genuine brand outcomes.”

Burbidge added, “Over the next few months, the slate is full of golden opportunities for brands to align with and leverage globally recognised IP that will undoubtedly deliver youth audiences, with Thunderbolts in May and 28 Years Later releasing in June.

“July will see two massive superhero epics—Superman and Fantastic Four: First Steps release—followed by Freakier Friday in August.”

• Download the full report here: valmorgan.com.au/famous