Explore the Interplay Between Social Media Marketing and Audience

Reception for Female-Centric Asian Films

Huangshenyi Guan

, Xiaohui Huang

, Zehui Yu

and Yitong Zhang

Faculty of Social Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, 39077 HongKong, China

Faculty of Science and Technology, Beijing Normal University - Hong Kong Baptist University United International

College, 519087 Guangdong, China

Yingyang Financial Technology Institute, Zhejiang University of Finance & Economics, 310018 Zhejiang, China

Faculty of Media and Communication, Monash University, 3800 Clayton Victoria, Australia

Keywords: Asian Films, Female, Social Media Marketing, Audience Acceptance Analysis, Culture Difference.

Abstract: With the popularity of social media, the interplay between the marketing of female-centric Asian films on

social media and audience acceptance becomes a topic worth exploring. This study aims to explore how the

marketing strategies of female-centric Asian films on social media affect audience acceptance and analyze

the mechanisms of interaction between the two, which adopts the method of literature analysis and empirical

research. First of all, the relevant literature is combed and analyzed to understand the existing research results

and theoretical framework. Secondly, through experimental design and data collection. In female-centric

Asian film marketing posts, and how these factors affect audience acceptance. The study found that there are

some high-frequency words in social media posts related to Asian films featuring women that could have a

potential impact on addressing gender inequality. At the same time, different content types and phrasing

influence audience preferences and behaviors, thus influencing their interactions on social media platforms.

In addition, the study found that female-oriented films have had a significant impact on positive changes in

society's perceptions of women, revealing and addressing several social issues and inequalities. This study on

the social media marketing of female-centric Asian films has important implications for changing social

perceptions, addressing gender inequality, and increasing the visibility and word-of-mouth of films.

1 INTRODUCTION

In recent years, the boom in film and television

productions centered on Asian feminism has been

fueled by the pervasive influence of social media.

After the severe impact of the epidemic on the

traditional Asian film market, there is a clear

recognition of the commercial potential of this genre.

Filmmakers are increasingly using social media

platforms as a key channel for film marketing,

amplifying the pursuit of equality and freedom

through the unique perspective of women, bringing

these films and the social phenomena they reflect to

wider attention (Venkat, 2016). Among the

demographic factors, age was found to influence the

effectiveness of social media reviews which included

Facebook and Twitter. Additionally, it was found that

age influences the effectiveness of IMDb and Book

My Show reviews. These findings give critical

insights to movie makers and production houses to

keep track of user-created social media content as

these can influence the decisions of people in

choosing whether to watch or skip a movie (Abdul,

2019). It uses observational and experimental data to

test the influence of cast racial composition on

consumers’ perception, their willingness to spread

word-of-mouth, and the film’s performance.

Therefore ， it concludes that the evidence of

persistent discrimination in Hollywood cannot be

attributed to the preferences of consumers, but instead

reflects bias among employers (Shrikant, 2020).

Legislators were attempting to structure an immediate

association with the potential voters on Facebook and

Twitter by posting and tweeting normally, the

dynamic clients then again started to captivate one

another on the political front. Social networking was

not just a path for our nets to have any kind of effect,

however, it likewise allowed individuals to grasp one

another's psyche set and impact sentiments by

offering learning and spreading mindfulness on an

Guan, H., Huang, X., Yu, Z. and Zhang, Y.

Explore the Interplay Between Social Media Marketing and Audience Reception for Female-Centric Asian Films.

DOI: 10.5220/0012822100004547

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Data Science and Engineering (ICDSE 2024), pages 77-85

ISBN: 978-989-758-690-3

individual level. Indian legislators emulated the

strides of Obama and carefully utilized the hashtag

system on Twitter. Slanting hashtags like

#electio2014, #namo, and #arvindkhejriwal made

individuals mindful of the most recent race

advancements (Alexandri et al, 2023). Based on the

formulation of the problem, the writer determines as

follows: "How is the construction of meaning in the

short film entitled "Tilik" related to semiotic

analysis". Then the problem posed can be concluded

as follows: the film "Tilik" has a socio-cultural

meaning and value construction that it can analyze

further, such as in social reality and representations of

Javanese women's behavior. From the scene and the

storytelling, interpretation, and meaning can be

obtained in the scene and the characteristics of the

players.

2 BACKGROUND AND

MOTIVATION

In recent years, the vibrant growth of films and

television productions centered around Asian

feminism has been propelled by the pervasive

influence of social media (Jin, 2020, Coulter, 2022).

This surge has ignited a heightened sense of

solidarity among women, fostering the courage to re-

evaluate personal values. In the aftermath of the

pandemic's severe impact on the traditional Asian

film market, there is a discerned recognition of the

business potential within this genre (Bellini, 2021).

Filmmakers are progressively embracing social

media platforms as the pivotal channel for film

marketing, amplifying the pursuit of equality and

freedom through the unique lens of women.

However, the zeal for social media marketing has

led to the emergence of polarised discourse and,

regrettably, a dilution of the authentic essence behind

these films. Presently, there remains an insufficient

depth of research on the social media marketing

strategies and societal impact of Asian feminist-

themed films.

The text of social media marketing posts on

female-centric Asian films will be observed and

analyzed from multiple emotional dimensions,

primarily targeting Mainland China, the regions of

Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, as well as Japan and

Korea. Simultaneously, the study will explore

modern social marketing strategies and their potential

impact on bringing about positive or negative changes

in social inequality issues for female audiences from

Mainland China and the regions of Hong Kong,

Macau, and Taiwan. Furthermore, the focus will

extend to examining how the differences in regional

culture between Mainland China and Hong Kong

influence social movie marketing posts on Weibo and

TikTok and their societal effectiveness, considering

factors of conservatism or open-mindedness. The

study aims to address three key questions:

Q1: To what extent can marketing texts on social

media get recognition from female consumers and

contribute to addressing gender inequality in society?

Q2: Does social media marketing for women-

centric Asian films play a pivotal role in addressing

societal inequality for women, and is this marketing

effective in yielding tangible results?

Q3: When comparing the distinct regional

cultures of mainland China and Hong Kong, how do

these cultural differences influence social media

strategies for promoting women-centric Asian films?

3 METHODOLOGY

3.1 Hypothesis

In response to the first key question of the inquiry, the

following hypothesis is proposed.

H1a: High-frequency Vocabulary Impact: This

study aims to identify high-frequency vocabulary in

social media posts related to women-centric Asian

films on Weibo and TikTok, evaluating their potential

impact on addressing gender inequality issues.

H1b: Emotional Intensity Analysis: The

experiment involves multidimensional analysis of

emotional intensity in marketing posts for women-

centric films, aiming to reveal trends in negativity,

neutrality, and positivity.

H1c: Audience Interaction Understanding: This

research seeks to understand audience preferences

and behaviors, especially how different content types

and wording influence audience interaction on social

media platforms.

In response to the second key question of inquiry,

the following hypothesis is drawn.

H2a: Impact on Social Cognition: This study aims

to discover the significant contributions of women-

centric films to positive changes in societal

perceptions of women, revealing their role in

addressing and resolving social issues and

inequalities.

H2b: Marketing Strategies: The study predicts

effective marketing and monetization methods for

films related to women's social issues, emphasizing

the importance of unique narratives and positive

ICDSE 2024 - International Conference on Data Science and Engineering

community interactions in enhancing visibility,

reputation, and viewership rates.

In response to the third key question of the

inquiry, the following hypothesis is proposed.

H3a: Celebrity Effects and Cultural Differences:

This research highlights the influence of female film

stars and directors on Weibo and TikTok, observing

audience preferences and differences between

mainland China and Hong Kong.

H3b: Mainland China and the Greater China

Region exhibit a trend of less optimistic marketing

effectiveness due to cultural openness and innovation

deficiencies.

3.2 The Impact of Text Marketing

To explore Q1, the materials and tools used are as

follows: This section utilizes Python for web scraping

and quantitative sentiment analysis, focusing on posts

related to Asian films with female-centric themes on

Weibo and TikTok (Liang et al, 2023, Novak, 2022).

The primary goal is to identify high-frequency

vocabulary within these posts and evaluate whether

they contribute significantly to potentially addressing

long-standing gender inequality issues or exacerbate

such societal phenomena. Additionally, this section

examines the frequency of audience interaction under

different post types to ascertain the level of platform

marketing necessary to secure approval from female

consumers and foster substantive behavioral changes

in support of equal social rights.

This section presents a multidimensional analysis

of the emotional intensity of the vocabulary used in

marketing posts on Weibo and TikTok, featuring 20

female-centric films from mainland China and the

regions of Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. For each

film, two posts from each platform will be collected.

The author will conduct A/B testing: Group A will

consist of 20 Weibo and 20 TikTok posts related to

10 mainland Chinese films, while Group B will

include 20 Weibo and 20 TikTok posts for 10 films

from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. Furthermore,

this section will rank the emotional intensity of the

selected vocabulary based on its usage frequency, and

it will present trends in negativity, neutrality, and

positivity in the form of bar charts.

A secondary survey involving 60 respondents will

be conducted to understand their preferences for

content types and to ascertain if these contents have

substantively changed their attitudes and behaviors.

This section will also observe the level of audience

interaction, including likes, comments, and shares,

under various post patterns, with a particular focus on

the influence of different content wording types.

Regarding the impact of content wording on

audience response, the research draws the following

primary findings: The use of the term "women" in the

promotion of female-centric films from mainland

China on Weibo and TikTok generates more intense

discussions and responses in the comment section.

The most frequently used term in the marketing

content of female-centric films from Hong Kong,

Macau, and Taiwan is "movie," which is likely linked

to regional cultural factors discussed in the third

section. Marketing posts for female-centric films in

Hong Kong on Weibo and TikTok tend to focus more

on the "director" as a promotional highlight compared

to mainland China.

3.3 Social Media Marketing Impact

This study aims to analyze the data to speculate on the

answers to Question 2 and its related aspects.

Figure 1. Audience age structure (Novak, 2022).

The required data for this study were obtained

from Chinese film reports and surveys (Figure 1).

According to recent surveys, audiences aged 20-34

make up approximately 70% of the total film

viewership. Therefore, this study considers the

opinions of this age group as general, representative,

and typical. The questionnaire survey conducted for

this study targeted film viewers aged 20-34, with 30

respondents from mainland China and 30 respondents

from China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, totaling 60

participants.

Since all 11 questions in the questionnaire survey

were set as mandatory and consisted of multiple-

choice questions, there is no need to eliminate blank

data during data preprocessing. The collected data

also does not have any redundancy issues and can be

directly used to establish the database.

The results of these questions are as follows:

5.80%

23.10%

20.50%

25.90%

13.70%

11.20%

0.00% 5.00% 10.00% 15.00% 20.00% 25.00% 30.00%

aged 19 and younger

aged 20-24

aged 25-29

aged 30-34

aged 35-39

aged 40 and elder

Audience Age Structure

Explore the Interplay Between Social Media Marketing and Audience Reception for Female-Centric Asian Films

73% of people believe that film and television

works play an important role in revealing and

addressing women's social issues and inequality.

Twenty percent believe that film and television

play a role in exposing and addressing social

problems and inequalities for women.

Seven percent believe that films and television are

not effective in exposing and addressing women's

social problems and inequalities.

62% of respondents are very excited about films

about women's social issues.

Thirty percent of respondents expect films about

women's social issues.

Eight percent of respondents do not expect films

about women's social issues.

Forty percent of respondents said they were

disgusted by the use of women's social issues as a

selling point on social media platforms, 47 percent

supported it, 5 percent did not care about it, and 8

percent had their own opinions.

Among the 60 respondents, for the effective social

media marketing means to attract the public to watch

movies, 41 people chose to interact and discuss on

Weibo, 30 people chose to publish short videos on

Douyin, 25 people chose to publicize on wechat

public accounts, and 2 people choose other methods.

When asked about the reasons for their decision

to watch female-related movies, 55 respondents

chose publicity on TikTok and Weibo, 22 chose

publicity on wechat public accounts, 21 chose

recommendations from friends, 8 chose posters, and

1 chose others.

Since all these questions are multiple-choice, this

study used data visualization to transform the data

from the database into charts to present the survey

results. Additionally, pie charts and bar charts were

utilized to highlight the key points and comparisons

in the data analysis more clearly and swiftly.

Figure 2. Intention distribution of questionnaire

questions(a) (Picture credit: Original).

Caption of Figure 2. 93% of people think that

films about women's social issues contribute to

revealing and addressing social issues such as

inequality faced by women, and 20% choose the

option that this type of film is very important, based

on this, it can be inferred that most people believe that

films related to women and women's social issues

have played a certain role in revealing and addressing

women's social issues and inequality.

Figure 3. Intention distribution of questionnaire questions

(b) (Photo/Picture credit: Original).

Figure 4. Intention distribution of questionnaire questions

Caption of Figure 3 and Figure 4. Ninety-two

percent of respondents expected films about women's

social issues, but four in 10 were offended when film

marketing used women's social issues as a selling

point on social media platforms., based on this, it can

be inferred that for films centered around women,

publicity strategies that emphasize female

protagonists and women's social issues can

effectively attract public attention, raise expectations.

However, excessive feminist marketing can also

generate public antipathy and negatively impact

reputation and public perception.

20%

73%

Do you think films play a role in revealing and addressing

women’s social problems and inequalities?

yes, they are very important. yes, they have a certain effect

no, they don't do much

30%

62%

After seeing the publicity, are you looking forward to seeing

movies about women’s social issues and inequality?

not expect a little bit expect expect very much

47%

40%

When seeing Chinese films promoting women’s social issues

as a selling point on social media platforms, your attitude is:

Actively support Be averse to it Apathy and unconcern others

ICDSE 2024 - International Conference on Data Science and Engineering

Figure 5. Intention distribution of questionnaire questions

(d) (Photo/Picture credit: Original).

As shown in the figure 5. Respondents believe

that marketing on the two platforms of Douyin and

Weibo, such as interacting with users and releasing

short videos related to movies, can effectively attract

the public and improve the movie viewing rate, which

is the most effective marketing method. However,

about 30% of respondents still rely on the

recommendation of friends to watch movies. Based

on this, it can be inferred that film marketing utilizing

social media platforms to invite users to participate in

discussions and interact with users can effectively

resonate with the audience, enhance the film's

visibility, improve viewership rates and box office

performance, and promote monetization. However,

word-of-mouth recommendations remain one of the

important factors driving people's film choices, so

films need to pay attention to moderation and

authenticity in marketing to maintain a good public

reputation.

Comparing the findings from the data analysis

with the hypotheses previously proposed in this

study, it is discovered that in terms of their impact on

social cognition, films centered around women have

made certain contributions to positive changes in

society's perception of women - revealing and

addressing social issues and inequality, which is

consistent with the hypotheses.

In terms of marketing strategies, when promoting

films related to women's social issues on social

media, active community interaction can resonate

with the audience, enhance the film's visibility,

improve viewership and box-office performance, and

promote monetization. This aligns with the

hypotheses. However, one aspect not considered in

the hypotheses is that marketing and film reputation

interact with each other. Appropriate and genuine

marketing can effectively enhance reputation, but

excessive or false marketing will be detrimental to

maintaining a film's reputation. Negative reputation

lowers the effectiveness of subsequent social media

marketing for films.

3.4 The Impression of Cultural

Differences

This section will be divided into two parts to elaborate

on Question 3. The study selects two representative

films with female themes from the past two years for

in-depth analysis, including “Lost in the Stars” from

mainland China and "Little Blue" from Taiwan.

Additionally, to further explore the influence of

regional cultural differences on the effectiveness of

social media marketing, this study collects 200

marketing posts related to the two films from the

TikTok and Weibo platforms as analytical data. It

includes post sources, types, word counts, platform

user distribution, and others. Furthermore, feedback

from 70 audiences in mainland China and Taiwan

regarding the consumption of female-themed films

was also collected.

Firstly, celebrity influence plays an irreplaceable

role in the social media marketing communication of

female-themed films in mainland China. Based on

this preliminary conclusion, the data collection

reveals that public figure accounts have become the

most frequently used channel for marketing female-

themed films on Weibo in mainland China,

accounting for 32%. (View Figure 6) Similarly, on

TikTok, 34% of marketing posts also come from

public figure accounts. (View Figure 7) In contrast,

advertisers and sponsors post the most marketing

content for female-themed films in Taiwan on Weibo

(30%) and TikTok (28%). (View Figures 8 and 9) It

is related to the factors considered by audiences in

different regions when selecting this type of film.

According to Figure 10, 45% of mainland Chinese

audiences pay more attention to the cast list of

female-themed films because they believe that the

lead actors have higher social influence and

commercial value. On the contrary, 39% of

Taiwanese audiences believe that the filming

background of female film directors is a key factor in

determining the quality of a female-themed film.

(View Figure 11) Female directors may better

understand the raw materials needed for female

protagonists and may establish better connections

with other female characters in leading roles

(Karniouchina et al, 2023). Additionally, through the

observation of analytical data, the study also finds

that mainland Chinese film producers are more

proficient in utilizing public figures' experiences of

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

advertisement from social media ( tiktok

[ China ] & weibo )

recommendation articles from Wechat

Official Accounts

friends'recommendation

poster

others

Through what channels did you decide to watch films about

women's social issues?

Explore the Interplay Between Social Media Marketing and Audience Reception for Female-Centric Asian Films

inequality in daily life and intense behind-the-scenes

footage to generate high exposure and discussion.

Based on survey data, 65% of mainland Chinese

audiences stated that the unequal experiences of

public figures are more likely to pique their interest

in learning about or consuming a film. However, 54%

of Taiwanese audiences oppose using this "sympathy-

selling" approach to boost box office revenue and

believe that the director's authority is the key factor in

determining box office results. Therefore, the greater

the director's authority, the higher the total box office,

highlighting the differences in consumer behavior of

audiences in mainland China and Taiwan due to

regional cultural differences in the soil (Fetscherin,

2010). Secondly, the cultural openness difference

between mainland China and Taiwan is a crucial

determinant in whether the social media marketing

strategy of female-themed films can change the

regional social issues concerning women. The survey

results show that 75% of mainland Chinese audiences

believe that female-themed films play a very crucial

role in alleviating social gender inequality issues and

phenomena. The social public opinion generated by

film marketing also becomes one of the main

catalysts. In contrast, 68% of Taiwanese audiences

still maintain the traditional view that deeply rooted

female inequality issues are difficult to properly

resolve in a short period. On the other hand, the paper

surprisingly found that on Weibo, 60% of users

participating in the marketing posts for mainland

Chinese female films are women. Similarly, 75% of

female users make significant contributions to the

marketing of films on TikTok. However, in Taiwan,

male users become the main group participating in the

interactive marketing posts of such films.

Figure 6. Movie Marketing Sources on Weibo – Lost in the Stars (Photo/Picture credit: Original).

Figure 7. Movie Marketing Sources on TikTok – Lost in the Stars (Photo/Picture credit: Original).

ICDSE 2024 - International Conference on Data Science and Engineering

Figure 8. Movie Marketing Sources on Weibo – Little Blue (Photo/Picture credit: Original).

Figure 9. Movie Marketing Sources on Tiktok – Little Blue (Photo/Picture credit: Original)

Figure 10. Key impact factors on Mainland China audiences (Photo/Picture credit: Original).

Explore the Interplay Between Social Media Marketing and Audience Reception for Female-Centric Asian Films

Figure 11. Key impact factors on Taiwan audiences (Photo/Picture credit: Original).

Furthermore, the paper also found that the most

frequently focused social issue in mainland China in

the past five years is employment inequality, while in

Taiwan, the ongoing concerns are family violence

and the social issue of favoring males over females.

At the same time, the status of women in Taiwan is

considered subordinate, as women must adhere to the

"Three Obediences and Four Virtues." (Hsieh et al,

2009). In traditional Taiwanese society, domestic

violence against wives is socially accepted (Heise et

al, 1999). Therefore, the phenomenon of male

dominance and female subordination in Taiwan is

still a controversial public issue, which is not

conducive to further expanding the marketing scope

of female-themed films in the Taiwanese market to

alleviate women's predicaments in society. In

comparison, mainland Chinese audiences prioritize

similar social issues more than those in Taiwan, and

the social media marketing effectiveness of the

former is more ideal.

4 DISCUSSION

Films related to feminism have instigated significant

positive shifts in addressing social issues faced by

women, drawing public attention to these concerns,

and facilitating the disclosure and resolution of

women's social problems and inequalities. However,

when producing and marketing such films,

particularly those adapted from real events or

individuals, it is crucial to prioritize accuracy over

sensationalism. Exaggerating facts or vilifying

characters for the sake of publicity and trending

topics is inappropriate. The narrative should

effectively advocate for women's causes rather than

merely using feminist themes as a marketing strategy

to boost box office numbers, especially when the

film's content does not genuinely engage with

women's issues. It's important to note that the data

samples analyzed in this study, derived from

questionnaires and China Film Daily, introduce some

subjective limitations to the data analysis presented in

this article. For instance, individuals' decisions to

watch movies may be influenced by various factors,

including ticket prices and interests.

The content is not professional enough, because it

is an open we-media platform, everyone has freedom

of speech and can express different opinions, and not

all are professional film critics or film professionals.

But it also maintained a different view of one thing.

And then because of gender, there is a big subjective

factor in it. Another limitation is our study. The data

used is that there is no way to avoid the subjective

emotions of the respondents. It is not only the film

itself, but also his marketing decision may have the

ticket price, the director, and the actor's love degree.

5 CONCLUSION

In summary, the purposeful study outlined several

anticipated outcomes across three key research

questions. The first set of objectives (Q1) involves

identifying high-frequency vocabulary impact,

analyzing emotional intensity in marketing posts, and

understanding audience interaction on Weibo and

TikTok related to Asian films with female-centric

themes. The second set (Q2) anticipates findings

related to the impact of female-oriented films on

ICDSE 2024 - International Conference on Data Science and Engineering

societal perceptions as well as recommendations for

effective promotional strategies. Lastly, the third set

(Q3) focuses on the influence of female film stars and

directors on social media platforms, exploring

cultural differences and the impact of censorship

regulations on marketing content. Collectively, these

expected outcomes aim to provide comprehensive

insights into the effectiveness of marketing Asian

films with a female-centric theme, taking into account

cultural nuances, audience engagement, and the

broader implications for societal perceptions and

gender equality. Ongoing experimental validation is

expected to further refine and substantiate these

anticipated findings.

AUTHORS CONTRIBUTION

All the authors contributed equally and their names

were listed in alphabetical order.

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Explore the Interplay Between Social Media Marketing and Audience Reception for Female-Centric Asian Films