Sears & MTV Sitting In a Tree...

On Aug. 1, 1981, MTV brought the world music videos. Somewhere around the year 2000, music videos became extinct and instead reality shows and MTV mini-movies stole the screen. It's 2008 and MTV is still looking for something other than music videos to put on the air. But, a movie with Sears? Back-to-school shopping, tube-sock toting, grandma-aisle-wandering Sears? I can hardly believe it.

In a joint venture that can only make Sears look cooler and MTV appear like they're running out of creative ideas, the two have come together to bring the universe, "The American Mall." The 87-minute film will air on MTV Aug. 11, 2008, and is geared towards the rapidly growing tween market.

Apparently the movie is a "musical romantic comedy set at a mall and focused on the relationship between two young musicians and their respective personal and professional struggles." Aww...now doesn't that sound cute?

The movie was filmed in a Utah Sears store, and if you look closely you'll notice that all the actors are wearing Sears clothes, and also appear in Sears advertisements. In addition, Sears will sell the DVD and soundtrack (talk about milking the cross-promotion!) all the while getting plenty of promotion time on MTV when the film hits the air.

According to an article in the Seattle Times, the two companies have been working on the movie since November 2007.

John Shea, the executive vice president of integrated marketing and brand partnerships at MTV Networks Music & Logo Group had this to say about the project, "If the movie works, it will benefit Sears certainly, as their exposure will benefit us."

Okay, but wait a second--isn't MTV already incredibly successful? While I certainly see the benefit for Sears (MTV = cool), I'm not sure I see the same benefits for MTV.

Perhaps it's just a matter of two conglomerates trying out something new. In any event, I'm excited to see what this "move" could do for Sears' image. I don't ever remember seeing a Sears commercial on MTV (and let's be clear, I watch a lot of MTV), so this partnership will no doubt put Sears in front of an audience they don't regularly get quality time with.

So, do you think "The American Mall" venture will take Sears to new tween heights? Or is it the most awkward retail pairing you've ever heard of? Leave your comments here.

--Heather Strang