Wedding Wishlist executes reality TV-inspired activation to prove a point

Wedding Wishlist, a wedding gift website, recently launched a new reality-based digital film #AvoidUselessWeddingGifts, conceptualised by the digital agency What's Your Problem (WYP) Brand Solutions.

In the film, wedding gift scanners were placed at select weddings venues. The scanners were x-ray machines (the kind used at airport security) manned by wedding gift inspectors who checked the quality of each gift placed on the belt in order to be scanned. The gifts were then marked against the guests.

When the guests understood that their gifts were actually being checked for quality, some resisted the checking, most were surprised but relented, and some found it rude, at which point the wedding gift inspectors revealed that this was all a joke. They were simply actors and there were hidden cameras capturing it all.

They took the opportunity to explain to the guests that wedding gift scanners and gift inspectors weren't obviously the solution, but Wedding Wishlist, which allowed couples to make a list of gifts that they needed and shared with their friends, was a great way out. Guests could gift couples what they actually needed and would cherish. The reactions were captured on hidden cameras placed at different places at the venue such as the entrance, among flower arrangements, or amidst the décor. The footage captured created a two-and-a half-minute film, which was then released on social media.

Reality or Staging?

Amit Akali, managing director and creative head, WYP Brand Solutions, says, "It is a combination of both reality and staging. We did this at one or two real weddings and the guests were not prepared for it."

When asked about the guests getting annoyed and walking off from a wedding, Akali says, "We revealed to them that this was a prank, and when you tell them nicely, it's okay. For instance, if Cyrus Broacha is doing Bakra (MTV Bakra), and says that you are on camera, the guests are normally fine with it. And, we gathered that experience when we worked with a reality show crew like MTV Bakra and Date Trap."

He further adds, "The two security guards were actors, of whom one had acted in Date Trap. We had given them earphones. There is a shot where we watch through hidden cameras, and through a microphone tell the actors posing as guards to catch the guests and watch their reaction. It's a combination of reality and staging."