Eva Mattes on Mon, 19 Dec 2005 17:59:54 +0100 (CET) |
[Date Prev] [Date Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Date Index] [Thread Index]
<nettime-ann> [ann] United We Stand |
. 14 December 2005, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE United We Stand 0100101110101101.ORG's fake movie hits the streets of your city ...and your mind "United We Stand. Europe has a mission" is the punchy title of the non-existent, fully EU-produced Hollywood-style blockbuster: "A brilliant mix of espionage and sci-fi political stereotypes in which Europe, not the USA, saves the world from impending doom". The project that consists in the invention and promotion of this nonexistent movie is hitting public and media space all over the world through city-scale urban installations and viral communication tactics. Isn't there something odd about this poster? The streets of Berlin, Brussels, Barcelona, Bangalore and New York have been plastered with thousands of posters of this fake movie, in the first stage of a long-term communication strategy that began in late 2005 and will gradually cover the whole media spectrum from blogs to magazines and TV. Full page United We Stand ads have been spotted all over Europe, in magazines devoted to art, youth culture and life styles. More are to come. "I'd heard about this new project - comments Spanish art critic Nilo Casares - but it was only when I saw the poster at the entrance of the European Parliament that I understood what 0100101110101101.ORG meant" "United We Stand" the movie It is the year 2020. With the excuse of halting North Korea's nuclear arms proliferation, the USA has declared war on China - a development long expected by international analysts. "We have a problem. Make that two: America and China", with these words, the European president calls for the intervention of a special Task Force: an undercover emergency team composed of five highly trained individuals only known as the English, the French, the German, the Italian and the Spanish agents. Their mission: to work behind the scenes to resolve the international crisis before it's too late and disarm the two superpowers without resorting to brute force. "The power of the United States is a thing of the past - claims the French Task Force agent - How can you go around like John Wayne in a globalized world, where anything you do affects everything and everyone? In the networked world that we live in, the European model is fated to win". Through international espionage, hi-tech sabotage and after many ups and downs, the Task Force comes close to achieving its aim. But when victory is within their sight, the mission apparently fails. How will Europe resolve the international crisis? The European Dream. Propaganda for the 21st century? United We Stand touches on themes of subliminal art, cultural propaganda and European identity, clashing against expectations and exploding cultural stereotypes. "Everyone remembers Peter Fonda in Easy Rider - says 0100101110101101.ORG's Eva Mattes - nobody is surprised by a leather jacket with an American flag, while the same jacket with a European flag would only make you laugh". Why is the patriotic iconography of the USA commonly accepted, while when it is applied to Europe it completely changes its meaning and actually beco _______________________________________________ nettime-ann mailing list nettime-ann@nettime.org http://www.nettime.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/nettime-ann