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Showing posts with label Pop Culture. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pop Culture. Show all posts

Monday, August 7, 2017

Codes and Antlers Abound at a Coca-Cola China Promotion in Bengbu

Coca-Cola promotion in Bengbu, China
Coca-Cola promotional event in Bengbu, China

For this year's summer campaign, Coca-Cola China with the help of McCann World group rolled out new packaging called the "Code bottle":
Cia Hatzi, McCann Worldgroup Regional Vice President for Coca-Cola said, "The codes include more than just emoticons, but also numbers mixed with characters and graphics. When communication involves feelings and emotions, we can turn conversations into real connections, which is the role Coca-Cola can help facilitate.”

The campaign debuts with two films that will run on both TV and digital platforms. The stories focus on friendship and romance, two themes which appeal to Chinese youth. The first spot, “Friend Hunt” [which came out in June] centers around an invitation, using codes, to connect with friends for a special moment. . . .

The second film, “Break-up”, [which came out in July] incorporates codes for consumers to trace a young couple’s relationship journey, from the first time they met, to their first date, first kiss, first fight and first break-up, and ultimately how they reconcile over a bottle of Coke.


Versions of both ads were displayed yesterday in a Coca-Cola promotional event at the Intime City (银泰城) shopping center in Bengbu, Anhui province. The last time I took a close look at a similar Coca-Cola promotion, I possibly came close to destroying one of the displays due to incorrectly believing the intended interaction involved slamming a red target as hard as one could. This time I decided to avoid any undesired feats of strength and just observed.

In addition to the large video screen, there were interactive booths, none of which even to me looked like they required any hitting.

Booths at a Coca-Cola promotion in Bengbu, China


The more stations visitors attended, the bigger of a gift they could receive in return. For example, with a stamp from one station visitors could get a small bottle of Coke. With five stamps, though, visitors could use a machine which produced a large Code bottle according to their own specifications. The station with the longest line was a virtual reality ride.

virtual reality ride and large video screen at Coca-Cola promotion in Bengbu, China


Also popular was a money grabbing booth which somewhat ineffectively blew paper tokens instead of money.

kids in a money blowing machine at a Coca-Cola promotion


Of course there was plenty of Coke around.

Coca-Cola bottles with deer antler caps


And at least some of the part-time staff were college students.

two young women wearing deer antlers and one young man at a Coca-Cola promotion in Bengbu, China


The full festivities lasted just one day, and today only a scaled-down version remained.

smaller version of Coca-Cola promotion in Bengbu, China


All of the red deer antlers on displays, bottles, and heads of female staff aren't signs of Coca-Cola getting into the winter holiday spirit way too early. Instead, they are an integral part of this and other Coco-Cola promotions featuring the popular Chinese singer and actor Lu Han, who is the main character in the "Friend Hunt" ad. The character for "Lu" — 鹿 — in his name means "deer" and many of his fans wear deer antlers to show their support. One of Lu Han's performances in Beijing even set a Guinness World Records title for "largest gathering of people wearing antlers" with 1,731 participating. For context, this number surpasses the world record for "most dogs in costumed attire", which was set by 1326 dogs in St. Louis, USA, but falls well short of the world record for "largest gathering of people wearing false moustaches", which was set by 6,471 humans in Denver, USA.

In addition to the antlers, the displays include other references to Lu Han, such as the Shanghai mailbox he made famous. So along with the codes, there was no shortage of symbolism. The event seemed to be a success in terms of turnout yesterday. They may have hoped for a slightly larger crowd when I happened to be observing, but many more people would have made it difficult to move around and participate.

After conversations with some of the staff, I was given an small ice cold bottle of Coke. Perhaps they felt I had interacted enough despite not participating at any of the stations. Perhaps they were just happy I didn't mistake anything for a strength tester this time.

Sunday, January 3, 2016

New Year's Lightsabers in Hong Kong

During the recent New Year's celebrations in Hong Kong I didn't notice any pro-democracy yellow umbrellas, but I did see people carrying lightsabers.

people carrying lightsabers and a Captain America shield across an intersection in Hong Kong

Since several rather different possibilities come to mind, readers are free to find any symbolism in the scene on their own. Clearly, though, Captain America was enjoying the "sweet taste of interfering in other countries’ internal affairs" that night.

Monday, December 7, 2015

'Tis the Season for Star Wars in China

Signs of Christmas are easy to find in China this time of the year, and in the past I have shared holiday scenes from Putian, Quanzhou, Wuhan, Zhangzhou, and Hong Kong. But none of them included TIE fighters or Imperial Stormtroopers. The idea of mixing Christmas with Star Wars will make some people cringe with memories of the fascinatingly terrible 1978 Star Wars Holiday Special. But at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai the two have been combined in a more harmonious manner to promote the upcoming release of Disney's Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Some people will still cringe due to the further commercialization of Christmas, but in China most people attach little or no religious meaning to the holiday and the government has more concerns about the potential "religionization" of Christmas.

Below are scenes at the shopping center from this past weekend, including Friday when several of the Star Wars displays were still roped off. Christmas trees with light sabers, starfighters, female models wearing Star Wars themed clothing, armed Star Wars figures, and an unarmed Santa Claus (unless you count his bell) all make appearances. Many of the photos capture the variety of people who interacted with the displays or the modern design of the shopping center itself. IAPM couldn't be more different from the simple outdoor market which existed at the same location less than 10 years ago and sold fakes imitating some of the luxury brands now available at posh stores there. The shopping center, its visitors, and Disney's new hopes in China are all signs of how much the country has changed since the first Star Wars movie opened 38 years ago in a land far, far away. . . .


Star Wars Stormtrooper with a gun at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


Star Wars Christmas display at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


little girl looking at a Star Wars display at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


young man taking a selfie with a Star Wars Stormtrooper at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


man taking a selfie in front of a Star Wars display at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


elderly man taking a photo of a Star Wars display at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


woman photographing a child in front of an X-wing fighter at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


Star Wars TIE fighter and Stormtroopers at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


X-wing fighter at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


woman posing with a light saber at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


man posing with a light saber at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


Star Wars display and Christmas tree at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


woman posing with a Star Wars stormtrooper at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


boy posing for photo with femal Star Wars models and life size statues at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


young woman posing with a Star Wars Stormtropper at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


Large Star Wars Christmas tree ornament at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


Star Wars TIE fighter at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


little girl posing for photo in front of a Star Wars X-wing fighter at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


little girl posing for a photo with two female models at the Star Wars promotion at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


young man and woman posing with Santa Claus at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


young woman posing for a photo with Santa Claus in front of Star Wars display at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


young woman posing with a Star Wars Stormtrooper at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


Star Wars TIE fighters at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


boy touching a Star Wars Stormtrooper's gun at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


posing for a photo in front of a Star Wars Christmas tree at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


young woman photographing a small model of a Star Wars starfighter at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


small model of the Millennium Falcon at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


young woman with a baby posing for a photo in front of a Star Wars display at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


young woman posing with Santa Claus in front of a Star Wars TIE fighter at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


elderly woman posing for a photograph with a female Star Wars model and a Stormtrooper at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


young woman wearing a ping New York Yankees hat looking at a Star Wars light saber display at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


man posing with a light saber at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


man taking a photograph of a Star Wars Stormtrooper head at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


Darth Vader's head at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


C3PO's head on display at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


Star Wars Christmas display at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai


Star Wars Stormtrooper with gun and man using a camera at the IAPM shopping center in Shanghai

Saturday, March 7, 2015

A Looney Tunes Sighting in Zhongshan

Who is not a fan of Looney Tunes?

man wearing a Looney Tunes jacket riding a tricycle cart

More tomorrow on the topic of cartoons in Zhongshan, China, though these cartoons will have a far more political aim than Looney Tunes.

Monday, January 28, 2013

Four Malaysian Girls and a Boy Band Book

4 girls, 3 wearing a hajib, looking at a computer screen in a bookstore

The girls in the above photo were excitedly talking to each other and giggling while using a computer at a mall bookstore in Melaka, Malaysia. They were seeking the book The One Direction Story: An Unauthorized Biography by Danny White. For readers not familiar with One Direction, according to Wikipedia:
One Direction are an English-Irish pop boy band based in London, consisting of members Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson. They signed with Simon Cowell's record label Syco Records after being formed and finishing third in the seventh series of British television singing competition The X Factor in 2010. The group subsequently signed in the United States with Columbia Records. Their two albums Up All Night (2011) and Take Me Home (2012), broke several records, topped the charts of most major markets, and generated worldwide chart-topping singles, including "What Makes You Beautiful" and "Live While We're Young".

Propelled to international success by the power of social media, One Direction are often described as sparking the resurgence in the boy band concept, and of forming part of a new "British Invasion" in the United States.
I have no deep insights to share about the popularity of boy bands. I'll just say that the above scene did not strike me as out of the ordinary for Malaysia and that minus a few hijabs it is one I could imagine commonly occurring in any U.S. city.

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Wrestling in China

The other day at a drink shop in Changsha I noticed some U.S. culture was playing on the TV.

U.S. professional wrester on a TV screen in Changsha, China.

It's definitely not the first time I have seen U.S. professional wrestling being watching in China. For more, see Pete Sweeney's article on Reuters, "Chinese fans bowled over by U.S. professional wrestling".

Mickey, Minnie, and Mao in Changsha

If there is an imitation Mickey Mouse in Changsha, China...

imitation Mickey Mouse in Changsha, China


Can I call this Minnie Mao?

imitation Minnie Mouse near a golden colored statue of Mao Zedong in Changsha, China

On another day I saw people wearing what appeared to be the same costumes participating in a promotion for something non-Disney elsewhere in Changsha but haven't seen the costumes for several weeks after that.

By the way, this, the previous, and the next post or two will have been previously scheduled to appear while I am asleep. After I wake up in the morning in China I plan to follow the U.S. election results. I have never done that before from Mao Zedong's home province, Hunan. I am not sure whether that or the large mice in Changsha would surprise Mao more.