Ever wonder what it would be like to talk to the people behind the scenes on your favourite feature film?

Last week, six journalists and bloggers across Europe found out what that was like. They were the handful of people who participated in the world’s first Q&A session using Avatar Kinect, the social entertainment experience launched by Microsoft just last month that allows Xbox users to meet and converse in virtual worlds via their avatar characters.

Paramount Pictures’ campaign to promote its summer blockbuster Cowboys and Aliens features exclusive content on the Xbox LIVE dashboard banners, showcasing key scenes from the filming and navigating users through a branded destination experience with a hub of information about the film including videos, galleries and free downloads. But what sets this campaign apart is the extensive video content available to users in this first-ever Q&A on Avatar Kinect.

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Paramount Pictures used the technology for the official movie junket at Claridges in London to enable the director of Cowboys and Aliens, Jon Favreau, and six journalists and bloggers across Europe to interact and talk about the film in a virtual environment. Avatar Kinect captures Favreau and the journalists’ facial expressions and voices in a lifelike way during the Q&A session.

The Xbox LIVE campaign for Cowboys and Aliens is a fascinating example of the innovative ways global entertainment brands are leveraging the power of Kinect to promote upcoming releases. Xbox has a large and growing audience of highly-engaged 18-34 year olds who like to keep up-to-date with the latest in games and entertainment. The Cowboys and Aliens campaign on Xbox enabled Paramount to promote its new film using interactive and highly engaging content. The environment offers advertisers the high definition impact of TV advertising with the interactivity and accountability of the Web. It’s really the best of both worlds.

We asked, Heath Tyldesley, Vice President, Interactive Marketing at Paramount Pictures Interactive Marketing for his perspective on the campaign. He had this to say:

“Microsoft is a key Pan Regional partner for PPI and the Xbox media integration a perfect extension on Cowboys and Aliens. It was also fantastic to work with Xbox to extend the editorial opportunity by pioneering a ground-breaking virtual Q&A with Director Jon Favreau using newly launched Avatar Kinect”.

The Cowboys and Aliens campaign is already live for Xbox users to enjoy in the UK and Australia, and will launch in selected European markets throughout this month.

Keep an eye out Xbox users, and make sure you check out the virtual Q&A to see Avatar Kinect in action!

Thanks,

Ginny Musante - Director, Interactive Entertainment, Advertising Business Group, Microsoft