Viral Now: The Prank Promotion

Adobe, in an attempt to promote the new Photoshop Live software, ran an activation in a busy bus stop in Sweden.

What happens when you are caught unawares in a bored moment and you suddenly realise that the world is watching? The moment yields a priceless expression worth preserving for a lifetime, of course!

Adobe, in an attempt to promote the new Photoshop Live software, ran an activation in a busy bus stop in Sweden. The prank involved a photoshop artist (magician) Erik Johansson and a photographer, who were placed in a van opposite a bus stop. While the photographer captured images of the waiting passengers, the photoshop artist instantaneously edited the images, to be displayed immediately on the flat screen TV billboard at the stop.

After the editing, the pictures turned into a series of comical animated images. While a man was shown packed in a glass bottle, an elderly man enjoyed his Arnold Schwarzenegger look, and others viewed their distorted and altered faces, some even clicking pictures of their new look.

The amused, shocked, puzzled and even amazed reactions of those caught on camera were captured on a video. The video was uploaded on YouTube on June 7, and has received more than 16.8 million views, 1.14 lakh likes and 1157 dislikes, till date.

The activation was implemented by the agency Abby Norm and the film was produced by Autoboys.

(Viral Now is a section about videos that are catching people's fancy on social media)

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