This is Felipe the Monkey. I wanted to put him in my pocket and take him home. He wanted to make his home my head.
This was the second time visiting the place my mother was born. I always forget that I’m a first-generation American. My mother immigrated to the United States when she was eleven and was schooled at a Massachusetts boarding school. Though Spanish was my first language, English replaced it as soon as I began attending kindergarten. The only time I’m able to practice is when I visit my grandmother.
It was great to go back for a second time and see the island with new eyes. It was also interesting to experience how I fit into the existing social strata, especially being merely an echo of a Dominican from the States.
All in all, my stay wasn’t long, but it was fun. And within a week of being immersed in the culture, my Spanish improved greatly. :)
You could imagine my surprise when I opened a recently arrived Fed-Ex package to find a boxed toy. My first thought was “who would send me a toy?” Then I turned it over to see what was inside and staring back at me was something so eerily familiar it that it gave me goosebumps. It was me!
My mind started racing back in time until it hit on something C.C. Chapman said to me a few weeks earlier: “You’ll be getting something in the mail that I think you’ll get a kick out of.” Oh, I got a kick out of it alright, so much so, that I opened the package right away, dismissing any thought of perservation. I tore into the package like a hungry kid in a candy store. I mean, you get your own action figure and you want to play with it, no?
There was a note inside explaining the deal: CMT is launching a new block of programming they wanted to spread the word about called Adventure Country which is premiering on April 9th. Included in the block are two shows called Danger Coast and Gator 911, both about people who risk their lives in order to save others, whether human or reptile. My action figure was based on one of the shows. How cool is that?!
I’ve never watched any shows on CMT, I guess I assumed it was mainly country music, but obviously it’s a lot more. I’ll have to tune in to this show and see what it’s all about. From the promotional videos that were included in the flash drive, they seem really interesting. One featured a man stranded at sea, another featured a trapped nine foot alligator. In both cases, the hosts had to figure out how to get the subjects to safety without hurting them or harming themselves. I also loved that one of the videos included one of the hosts talking directly to me. No joke, he said “Hi Zadi…” Pretty cool. Marketers take note: action figures with personalized videos are definite wins.
If you want to check out what this is all about, you can head over to welcometoadventurecountry.com. Big thanks to CMT for giving me something to check off my bucket list. Sweet!
And if you’ve ever wanted your own custom action figure (someone asked me on Twitter), you can go to thatsmyface.com, but there are a few others as well!
Producer & correspondent Rachel Dretzin and correspondent Douglas Rushkoff discuss how the Web and digital media have transformed work, learning and social interaction in ways that we are only beginning to understand. FRONTLINE’s “Digital Nation” premieres Tuesday, February 2, 2010, 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET on PBS. Check local listings at http://www.pbs.org/tvschedules
Been keeping busy. Here are two TV spots we recently produced & directed for Jinx.com — one featuring Epic Fu and the other for Empire Arcadia. We were excited to work on these not only because we’ve been following Jinx for a while, but because we felt they got it right: they wanted to highlight indie folks who were passionate about what they do, in essence becoming a co-commercial (everyone wins). Check out how they’re showcasing the work of the people who are participating in their campaign. They’re a team of passionate folks who love the web and the people on it. How could we pass that up? :)
