TikTok Duets Harmoniously Hype Dear Evan Hansen Movie

Five TikTok influencers invite the platform's users to sing along in Portal A's tuneful social promo for Dear Even Hansen, the coming-of-age teen film that opened last weekend, based on the Tony-winning musical.

Using the ever-popular Duets feature, the campaign kicked off earlier this month with Alexa Chalnick's peppy piano performance of "You Will Be Found," the movie's signature song.

@alexachalnick

Duet me! Let’s hear your beautiful voices 💙 #YouWillBeFoundDuet #DearEvanHansenMovie #Ad

♬ Dear Evan Hansen Movie In Theaters on Sept 24th - AlexaChalnick

Creators Gabriella Joy (lead vocals), Ear Candy (harmonies), Matthew Deloch (dance moves) and Scarlet May (American Sign Language) joined with Chalnick to create an uplifting and inclusive shared track:

@scarlet_may.1

#ad #duet with @matthew.deloch cant get this song out of my head 🎶 duet me! #youwillbefoundduet #dearevanhansenmovie #Ad

♬ Dear Evan Hansen Movie In Theaters on Sept 24th - AlexaChalnick

And here's all the project content so far, spanning nearly 250 UGC duets.

Evan Hansen distributor Universal Pictures chose this approach to reach the 13-24 crowd, and particularly females, who make up of 60 percent of TikTok's user base.

"TikTok is a place known for its authenticity as well as its strong connection to performing arts," says Universal VP of digital marketing Leigh Godfrey. "With an original, emotional and honest story that speaks about issues confronting young people today—and boasts an amazing soundtrack—TikTok felt like the perfect place to engage."

The film opened to mixed to reviews and a so-so box office, but this project has proven popular, surpassing 4 million views and counting, plus 230,000 shares, likes and comments.

Three Portal A staffers feature in the UGC mix. Below, you can sing along with talent chief/associate partner Brittani Kagan, associate talent producer Jeb Barnett and project manager Hana Sara Lee.

@brittanikagan

#duet with @alexachalnick #youwillbefoundduet #dearevanhansenmovie #PortalAPride

♬ Dear Evan Hansen Movie In Theaters on Sept 24th - AlexaChalnick

@jebidiah

#duet with @alexachalnick IM SO EXCITED FOR THIS MOVIE SOMEONE ADD HARMONIES PLEASE #dearevanhansenmovie

♬ Dear Evan Hansen Movie In Theaters on Sept 24th - AlexaChalnick

@hannasaralee

#duet with @alexachalnick #YouWillBeFoundDuet #dearevanhansenmovie my neighbors dog is singing with me the whole time!!!

♬ Dear Evan Hansen Movie In Theaters on Sept 24th - AlexaChalnick

CREDITS

Universal
Leigh Godfrey, VP Digital Marketing
Christina Barkhorn, Sr. Publicist

Portal A
Zach Blume, President
Kai Hasson, Creative Director
Brittani Kagan, Head of Talent
Emma White, Managing Director
Elyse Preiss, Head of Production
Art Morales, Head of Post Production
Michelle Farhang, Director of Project Management
Sara Lee, Project Manager
Ashley Czerniewski, Creative Lead
Liv Burke, Creative Lead
Adam Valerias, Producer
Ria Madon, Talent Producer
Kristin Jay Montante, Designer
Bee Rhodes, Visual Effects Lead
Jeb Barnett, Associate Talent Producer