If a picture is worth a thousand words, how many is a video worth? And how many more is it worth if it arrives in your inbox from your best friend?
Some months ago I received one such video, accompanied by this note from a good friend of mine: "You just have to watch this one. It's from your home town!" I watched and was so surprised by what I saw that I immediately forwarded it to two other friends.
Titled "Dynamite Surfing," the apparently homegrown video features seven masked teens and a lake in the center of Copenhagen.
While one guy jumps into the small lake with a surfboard, the rest of the gang race for cover and one of the cohort makes for the bridge that spans the lake. As the surfer reaches the lake's center, the guy on the bridge lobs a lit cartoonesque bundle of dynamite into the lake. The subsurface explosion generates a massive wave in the peaceful lake, generally home to flocks of placid ducks. The surfer paddles ahead of the wave, catches it, and proves that you can go surfing in Copenhagen's city center. The scene is dramatic and very convincing, no matter how unlikely you know it to be.
But as transparent as it all seems to be, the truth behind the scene may surprise you. Contrary to appearances, this is not the work of a gang of like-minded friends with a cool idea and a hand-held camera.
"Dynamite Surfing" is the carefully crafted creation of a large, professional film crew. Weeks of preparation preceded the 60-second Quiksilver stunt, directed by one of the world's largest advertising agencies.
And, it turns out, I hadn't been sent the link by accident. An expert in spreading word-of-mouth branding on the Internet kick-started global interest by handpicking one thousand opinion leaders to send the link to. This ensured that I, and the other base group of recipients, would receive the ad unhindered by spam filters.
But just because the production was professional doesn't mean the creation, the message, and its delivery weren't authentic. No hi-tech cameras or lights, flashy backdrops, or highly paid models were used in the creation of this viral ad. Its authenticity and mystery propelled the viral to instant fame—12 million downloads the first three months—and even inspired headlines pleading for legislation against such outrages as youths being allowed to run about with explosives, vandalizing ornamental lakes, and shattering public peace.