This afternoon, a package from HBO arrived at my doorstep. Curious, I grabbed my vidcam and documented what quickly became not only an awesome “unboxing” video, but an amazing — and remarkably unconventional — narrative journey.
Ride shotgun with me as you get an unfiltered, as-it-happens look at this amazing HBO package as I experience it … and learn a little about the world of HBO’s upcoming fantasy series Game Of Thrones (based on the terrific novel series by George R.R. Martin) along the way.
For viewers who want a closer look at the images seen briefly in the videos, check the gallery below for larger versions.
And do be careful out there. Winter is coming.
–J.C.
Click the image thumbnails below to view detail shots of the HBO package. (Click your browser’s “back” button to return to this page, and the gallery.)
So jealous of you right now..
After I watched both videos, I sat back in my chair and said “Wow!” repeatedly. This kind of storytelling sets the bar high for me as a storyteller/marketer.
It takes me back to the moment I discovered The Hobbit. It was in a musty “leather” bound volume and the inside cover was a map of Middle Earth. For a brief moment, Childhood Me thought he was holding a tome from an actual fantasy world.
This is so much more immersive than a QR code on a soft drink container. It’s a new set of Legos and I’m excited that this is only the beginning of the experience.
Thank you for posting this.
Okay, 3:3- am and you have totally engaged my inner story geek. Loved loved this.
You get the coolest toys! I can only imagine how excited you were to get this mystery package in the mail! Wow! I liked the book too and can’t wait for the show.
I can totally see this as telling a narrative through scent.
If you liked experiencing that, you should get a few IMPS from Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, it’s a similar experience for me, although certainly not as elaborate!
Being a HUGE fan of George R.R. Martin’s series for over a decade, I am physically ill with jealousy!!!! DAMMIT, you are one lucky mofo!
Phil and I are partial to Kraken rum, fyi.
Also, you look FANTASTIC, J.C.! So happy for your progress, you bastard!
This is an amazing way to tell or augment a story. Smell is the one thing that can trigger memories (or make them) better than any other of the human senses. I’d love to see if this teaser pack from the HBO series will somehow make it’s way in another form for ‘regular’ viewers of the show. YOU were an amazing pick to send this to not only because you appreciate this type of crossover storytelling (and dammit – you WRITE it) but you have an amazing ability on describing the process you are going through. Great narrative throughout the video, thanks JCH!
Hey. Why did HBO send you this? Have you worked with them before? How did they get your address?
1) I can’t say with any certainty.
2) Nope.
3) I don’t know.
Hey Jack – I can answer that, because I’m the one who did a lot of the strategy on this initiative
1) HBO sent it to JC on my recommendation from a list of a couple hundred potential recipients I submitted (which they reduced to about 80), because I know him and have worked with him before, and I just KNEW he would love it, being a transmedia specialist, and knowing his work on Dark Art. I kind of wanted his affirmation that we’d done a good job.
2) See above. JC and I have collaborated together in the past (on The Colony), and I’ve met him in person one time, but he didn’t work on this.
3) We’re pretty good stalkers, and we gave his address to HBO
Gods! The Seven smile upon you.
An epic marketing campaign for an epic story.
Great video. Great job. Thank you.
HBO (and/or their marketing company) obviously knew where to send these.
Oh, it’s WES-te-ros — finally confirmed.
Recently-released pronunciation guide here:
http://winter-is-coming.net/2011/02/mgot-update-pronunciation-guide/
— same site that linked to yours.
Oh, wow. This totally rocked. Thanks for filming this. What a freakin’ awesome approach to story-telling. And yeah, you get the coolest toys!
Sooooo. Where do you live?
Like, what is your street address, I mean?
Also, do you own any dogs and/or firearms?
Just kidding, I’m totally not going to rob you. I’m just not that kind of guy. But, out of curiosity, where in your home are you keeping that box, exactly?
Very flaky questions, Andrew. I’ll pass on answering them.
Thanks for filming the reaction for us fans, I love how excited you were about the whole thing : )
I love that you are completely geeked out by this. I would have had the same kind of reaction. Thanks for sharing it with us.
D
I am completely eaten up with jealousy!
)
What a treat! Never seen this much love put into a marketing experience (or into a video of the unboxing
. I’m deeply impressed. I think Campfire set a new standard for creating online buzz. Also nice they inserted themselves in the kit (does Campfire smell like a campfire though?).
Now all of us writers: off to the mattresses to think up an even cooler media campaign for our next books
Wow, what a fascinating way to tell a story. Thank you, J.C., for sharing your experience!
This is just awesome! May I post this video in my blog? Because olfactoric storytelling is the most impressive thing. 3d story telling (like almost every movie nowadays) is just for fun. Scents story telling is deep-mind-walker.
This is an interesting way to market and promote a new series. But I disagree with your statement that this is “a totally new way of telling stories.” First of all, the idea of a mysterious old suitcase containing items that somehow tie in to a story told on another platform (tv in this case) was “borrowed” from Peter Greenaway’s transmedia project avant-la-lettre, The Tulse Luper Suitcases. Greenaway’s project consisted of 3 movies, an online game The Tulse Luper Journey (tulseluperjourney.com), an opera, a book and an installation. Central element of the story are the 99 suitcases left behind by the main character of the project. These suitcases were actually made. They were part of the installation, the movies, the game, etc. and look a lot like the suitcase you received. These suitcases also contained sets of mysterious items.
And secondly, if you consider this to be advanced storytelling, then all smart marketing strategies should be considered to be just that.
As someone who helps create transmedia narratives for a living, I’m well aware of the storied project you describe. I’ve also received packages like that projects’, and created and shipped such packages.
Kindly re-watch the videos, Remco … and re-watch the comments I made in them, which you seem so keen to nitpick. Unless the projects you mentioned heavily leveraged the sense of smell in their experiences, I’ll stand by my enthusiastic, uttered-in-the-moment comment about this specific breed of narrative. If there’s a transmedia experience that showcased scents before this one, I’m not aware of it.
Further: I don’t recall ever saying in the videos that I considered this “advanced storytelling.” I recall being greatly impressed by the quality of the experience, and its groundbreaking use of scents and smell in its unconventional narrative.
My hate/envy is strong right now Hutch. So freaking cool. I love when studious, publishers and game designers do this stuff. If I wasn’t already a fangirl this would tip me over the edge.
So incredibly jealous. However, your enthusiasm is awesome, and I don’t think that the marketing team over at HBO could have chosen a better recipient.
JC – thank you for this outstanding video. Your own physicality brings the box to us in a meaningful and emotionally resonant way; to the point where I don’t even feel the need to be jealous because I’m right there with you. The introverts of the world appreciate the art of your expression. Word up, home slice.