
Netflix just bought HBO and Warner Bros, so yayyy more access to your fave movies, right?
RIGHT? Well, yes, bigger content libraries and easier distribution is one result of this move. But the more worrying one is the consolidation of (nearly) the entire film industry under one roof. An industry where real art comes from pushing boundaries. Depicting the weird and wonderful. Making us feel something. But if Netflix’s #1 goal is to appeal to a broad audience, to reduce overhead, and to scale… that’s not exactly a breeding ground for truly creative film.
- Charlotte Ellis, Editor ♡
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WHAT’S HAPPENING IN MARKETING TODAY?
Reddit gets rid of r/popular, Pantone may be ragebaiting us & AI race heats up

Reddit is retiring r/popular as its default feed in favour of personalised feeds.
2025: the year that everyone took everything from us.
Reddit is getting rid of its long-time default feed r/popular, at least for new users. The company’s CEO, Steve Huffman, said the feed “sucks." He pointed out that it mostly reflects what the most active Redditors like, rather than what’s truly popular across its diverse communities.
Instead, Reddit will roll out personalised discovery feeds tailored to individual interests. This is a shift designed to make the experience more relevant and less misleading for newcomers, apparently.
Is the Pantone Color of the Year ragebait? The controversy is explained.
This year, Pantone named a soft off-white hue, also known as "Cloud Dancer," as its Colour of the Year… and quickly realised it had made a huge fkn mistake lol.
The response has been… loud. Many critics argue the choice is tone-deaf, calling the styling bland and even culturally insensitive amid a moment when strong, expressive design could matter more than a neutral palette.
Personally, it looks to me like another case of brand ragebait. I mean, when you think about it, Pantone is nowhere near as influential or relevant as it once was. Grasping at straws and pissing people off is sometimes the last road out of mediocrity, I guess?
OpenAI’s GPT-5.2 "code red" response to Google is coming next week.
OpenAI seems to be hitting the gas pedal. And the company’s next-gen model, GPT-5.2, seems to be being rushed out (in my HUMBLE opinion.) It’s said it may possibly roll out as soon as next week, after CEO Sam Altman declared a “code red” in response to rising competition from Google’s Gemini 3 and others.
Internal evaluations reportedly show GPT-5.2 outperforming Gemini 3, which could make this update a major turning point in the AI race. Grab y’all popcorn.
-Sophie Randell, Writer
DEEP DIVE
Streaming’s biggest takeover (and what it might cost cinema)

When Netflix struck a deal to acquire Warner Bros. Studios, HBO/HBO Max and its vast catalogue (including everything from Harry Potter to Game of Thrones to the cinematic universe of DC Studios), it signalled more than a mighty business transaction.
It’s a seismic fkn rewrite of how we produce, distribute and value film and television.
It doesn’t take much imagination to see the upside. A single global platform with a library so vast, it rivals the ambitions of legacy Hollywood studios. For viewers, maybe that means cheaper bundles, easier discovery, and access to classic and new titles alike.
But those things, I couldn't care less about.
What I do care about, in fact, is what is lost when the old structures, the ones built for creative risk, thematic ambition, and the bold strange get swallowed into a monolithic distribution machine.
When streaming giants talk “consolidation” and “integration,” they often mean “uniformity,” “efficiency,” and “cost-optimisation.”
The deep, messy, cluttered soul of filmmaking—long nights on set, passionate arguments over cuts, raw human instinct, Quentin Tarantino's propensity for feet shots—may become collateral damage. Those grand studios, once temples of creativity and experimentation, risk becoming freaking content factories.
The acquisition puts nearly every major franchise under one roof. That means control, yes. But also, gatekeeping of what gets made, what gets greenlit, what gets shelved.
All determined by spreadsheet projections and algorithmic forecasts.
Iconic IPs like Harry Potter, DC superheroes, and blockbuster fantasy epics now live at the whim of subscription growth charts, churn rates, and global market data.
Obviously, many in the industry are sounding alarm bells. Because, wtf. The integrity of cinema is literally hanging in the balance rn. One of the greatest art forms in history. At risk entirely.
Voices from guilds, creative unions, theatre owners and filmmakers warn this consolidation could signal fewer theatrical releases and less support for ambitious, original, risky cinema.
Because making a streaming-first blockbuster that’s comfortable, formulaic and built to appeal to the broadest possible audience is very different from making a movie that seeks to challenge, disturb, make you sit with discomfort or moral ambiguity.
Risk takes scale, but art often demands vulnerability and uncertainty. And isn’t that the whole fkn point of film?
On top of that, the economics of this deal suggest cost-efficiency will trump volume.
Netflix inherits a mountain of content. Why, then, ramp up production aggressively? Why invest in bold new risks when you can recirculate proven hits, rely on legacy franchises to keep subscriptions afloat, and reduce overhead?
The incentive to take creative gambles, to back weird or niche projects, may very well evaporate.
There are still pockets of possibility. Independent filmmakers, global regional cinema, local production houses may see this as a moment to step forward. When the giants all behave like the same machine, uniqueness, cultural specificity, local voice, indie grit, it all becomes precious.
If enough of us care about what’s lost in the name of “efficiency,” maybe a different kind of creative economy can flourish.
But make no mistake: this takeover changes the gravitational centre of entertainment.
I need y’all to understand the weight of this moment here. It recasts what “mainstream” will look like for decades.
The ad pitch is convenience, breadth, and choice. But the under-the-surface reality might be deeper conformity, the death of risk, unpredictability, and the strange beauty that only cinema can deliver.
If you loved movies because they unsettled you, challenged you, or showed you worlds you didn’t know existed, call this moment a warning.
Because what’s coming may be comfortably watchable… but rarely unforgettable.
-Sophie Randell, Writer
TREND PLUG
It’s tiiiiimmeee (again)

There are only three things guaranteed in life: death, taxes, and Mariah Carey defrosting the second it hits December.
Every year, without fail, the queen of Christmas wakes up from her cryogenic slumber and announces the start of holiday season with two words (well… five i’s): “It’s tiiiiiiime!”
The sound (if you live under a rock) comes from Mariah Carey’s now-iconic video from November 1st, where she literally turns the world into a winter wonderland and belts “It’s tiiiiiiime!” to declare Christmas season officially open. The clip resurfaces every. single. year. without fail.
It’s basically the starter pistol for holiday content and brands. Creators and everyone in between knows it. Which is why you’ll always see 500 Christmas campaigns launch the same hour this sound starts circulating. This year, like any other, people are using the sound to announce the exact moment they personally switch into Christmas mode. Think:
How you can jump on this trend:
Use the audio to show your big seasonal moment. Throw up on-screen text “When ___ and I know it’s officially Christmas season” or “The moment we…”. Then show whatever holiday thing you or your brand is kicking off.
A few ideas to get you started:
When the content brief says "add a festive twist"
When the group chat agrees it’s finally acceptable to play Christmas music
When engagement magically rises the second we post a Christmas giveaway
-abdel khalil, marketing & brand exec
FOR THE GROUP CHAT
😲WTF Is this plane safe?
❤How wholesome Real life Disney film
🎧Soooo tingly Styrofoam cutting
🍝What you should make for dinner tonight Palak paneer for your meal prep
ASK THE EDITOR

Do I need a separate strategy for TikTok and Instagram or can I just post the same videos everywhere? - Sierra
Hey Sierra!
Every platform does have its own audience and culture, so content that does well one place may or may not perform as well somewhere else. And many big brands have platform-specific strategies, with different content going on each one. But for smaller brands that don't have the resources to do that, there's no downside to posting your videos everywhere and seeing what happens.
So if you're already creating content for TikTok, go ahead and try posting it on Reels, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube shorts. You may find an entirely new audience just by repurposing your content. Just make sure you're interacting with your audience when you do get engagement on those new platforms.
- Charlotte Ellis, Editor ♡
Not going viral yet?
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