Many of us today probably use the Web to book tickets and find information about movies. By selling tickets and entertaining visitors, websites help movies succeed at the box office and earn public approval. And yet, website developers don't get any public recognition for the success of movies. Isn't it a bit unfair in the Internet era not to bestow a single bit of appreciation for the presentation of movies online?

Most modern movie websites are built in Flash, even when it's totally unjustified. The websites often lack usability standards and require users to click through splash pages and introductions in order to access content. They have the luxury of being able to neglect common principles and standards because they garner attention merely by their association with the movies they promote. Let's suppose, though, that these developers got their own Palmes d'Ors, Oscars and Bears. Wouldn't this be strong motivation to create outstanding and usable websites?

In this post, we imagine Oscars being given to both movies and their websites. This is, of course, not a new award from Smashing Magazine and far less an attempt to assume the right and honor of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. It's just a fun way to observe the latest trends in movie website design and to showcase the best websites of the 2009 blockbusters, as well as recent and upcoming movies.

Nomination: Cross-Media Interaction
The increasingly popular mobile Web and social networks just can't be ignored by movie companies. Many movies are represented on Twitter, Facebook and other social networks and bookmarking services. Many movie websites have social media panels and widgets that let users get updates and share information about the movies on their own websites and social network pages.

iPhone and iPod apps have become common promotional tools as well. Some movies even have community websites that bring people together around certain topics discussed in a film. The deepest and most versatile social media integration is exemplified by the following websites.

The Nominees Are:

Alice in Wonderland
For the wonderful mobile applications.

Star Trek
For the complete collection of social network links.

Pandorum
For the deep media interaction (widget, social networks, iPhone game, etc.).

District 9
For the earthling and non-human communities.

Avatar
For providing numerous ways to spread word about the movie.

The Twilight Saga: New Moon
For attending to all kinds of Twilight fans (take the TwilightMOMs community for instance!).

Winning Picture

The winning design.

With 5 official streams on major social networks, over 15 community websites and 4 items in the App Store, The Twilight Saga: New Moon is the clear winner in this category.

Nomination: Interactivity

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: For the magical image gallery.

Nomination: Dynamic Effects

Where the Wild Things Are: For the beautiful and organically integrated video.

Watchmen: For the incredible dynamic effects.

Terminator Salvation: For the well-styled video stream.

Nomination: Best Exclusive Content

Watchmen: For the incredible character profiles.

Nomination: Typography

Watchmen

Where the Wild Things Are

Nomination: Cross-Media Interaction

Avatar: For providing numerous ways to spread word about the movie.

Red Carpet Stars

Valentine's Day
The website for Valentine's Day has a social network-ish look and feel, mainly because the background photos look like the profile pictures on a social network.

Here's excerpts from the full article, along with the details for the New Moon award!
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/04/14/what-if-oscars-were-given-to-...

What If Oscars Were Given To Movie Websites?