A Greater Happier Toronto
Graffiti, pies in the face, and bubbles on billboards, are a few examples of what is known as a culture jam. A culture jam is a ‘movement that seeks to undermine the marketing rhetoric of multinational corporations, specifically through such practices as media hoaxing’ (Harold, 2004). They are groups of people that believe that a message should be sent to the public to make them more aware of issues within society. One interesting aspect to these groups is that their pranks are often done without the use of corporate media to spread their message. This makes their pranks both intriguing and interesting to analyze how powerful people can be without the use of major media.
Culture Jams seem like a phenomenon only heard of in places like the UK or LA. Who would have thought that there was one right here in Toronto? There is a group known as Improv in Toronto which is a ‘free, non-profit, public, urban, event-running, group’(Improv in Toronto, n.d). They bring together people from all over the world to participate in activities out of the norm. Each one of their missions is fun and engaging with the intention of changing up the average person’s routine day. Toronto is a busy city with people doing the same thing say in and day out. Bringing notice to the people living in a predictable life may help them to stop being so routine, and engage in a more exciting, happier life. They pride themselves on long lasting events that build friendships, as well as awareness to the GTA. Each one of these missions involves the group performing with, or for, the public in order to bring awareness to Torontonians.
Some examples of pranks, which they call ‘missions’, they have held are The No Pants Subway Ride, Free Hugs, A Real Life Game of Clue, and the Eaton Centre Freeze.
Improv in Toronto does these missions to bring awareness to the routine aspect of many workers, and gives them an outlet to do something different in their day. An example is their ‘Eaton Centre Freeze’ which is a re-creation of the ‘Grand Central Freeze’ in which actors are spread out among the mall and at a certain moment freeze in position (Improv in Toronto, n.d). This causes the public to be confused, entertained, or just curious as to what is happening. It created an event in someone’s life that made that day different then their usual routine and might have even put a smile on their face.
Improv in Toronto does these missions to bring awareness to the routine aspect of many workers, and gives them an outlet to do something different in their day. An example is their ‘Eaton Centre Freeze’ which is a re-creation of the ‘Grand Central Freeze’ in which actors are spread out among the mall and at a certain moment freeze in position (Improv in Toronto, n.d). This causes the public to be confused, entertained, or just curious as to what is happening. It created an event in someone’s life that made that day different then their usual routine and might have even put a smile on their face.
The missions Improv in Toronto do are similar to the pranks ‘Pranking Tabacco’ that Harold talks about. In Pranking Tabacco, one method used was putting unfilled bubbles on advertisements for the public to fill in the message being said (Harold, 2004). For Improv in Toronto, they use people who volunteer as ‘agents’ to take part in the events to promote the general public to engage in the event they are doing. These two groups are similar because in both methods the groups try to target the public as a whole, by using the public to spread the message. Both techniques do not involve any form of mass media to produce their meaning.
Although many people may not realize the intention of Improv in Toronto pranks, they have the capability to be more successful than one may think. These missions do not have a clear message shouted every time, or any signs to read. The message is taken in through the emotions of the public. Your average working person may not realize that getting a free hug made them smile, cheered them up, or just changed up their daily routine. I believe that it is a very positive way to shed some light on a sad issue. As Christine Harold explains typically, ‘Pranksters shine light on an issue without giving an alternative solution’ (Harold, 2004). It is great to make something noticeable, but not having a solution to the mistake one pointed out seems unproductive and negative. Improv in Toronto breaks away from this common trend by fixing the solution. Instead of just stating that the working class is too routine, they use missions to ‘shake up’ people’s day and ultimately try to fix the problem that they are pointing out. This leads to a successful social experiment which a positive spin on society.
One weakness that Improv Toronto may have is that their motives and intentions aren’t always very clear. By not stating the point behind their missions, many people in the public may just find their methods annoying, frustrating and immature. It leads to the opposite reaction they are trying to create by making people feel unenthusiastic. It may just seem like a public demonstration happening just to get into people faces. If Improv Toronto showed the intentions behind their actions, more people may be inclined to participate. This is because people who have a routine lifestyle rarely take the time to step back and evaluate themselves to realize the circle they are in. If someone made it clear that they live in a bubble, they would be more likely to embrace the process of changing in order to not be so predictable.
The implications of a group such as Improv in Toronto to the media is that they send out the message that media production groups are not the only people capable of spreading a message. Using the general public, the missions create a movement that corporate media can report on, but cannot recreate. It shows that people are listening to something other than the media. Improv in Toronto also gets in touch with people face to face in public which helps to channel their message directly and clearly. Another way Improv in Toronto advertises for themselves without major forms of media is through Youtube. By posting their missions, the public has access to watching how these events unfold and impact the general public. There is no need for news stations to report on the events when they have their own mode for getting the videos out to the public.
Improv Toronto send a positive message out through each one of their missions which is to have fun and not always take part in a routine life. By doing something different once in awhile one is able to connect with others and ultimately make themselves happier. The links below are of various missions Improv for Toronto has done in the GTA:
Eaton Centre Freeze: http://improvintoronto.com/2008/11/18/eaton-centre-freeze/
Free Hugs: http://improvintoronto.com/2010/10/09/free-hugs-2010-2/
No Pants Subway Party: http://improvintoronto.com/2011/01/24/no-pants-subway-ride-2011-2/
Works Cited:
Harold, C. (2004). Pranking Rhetoric: “Culture Jamming” as Media Activism. Critical Studies in Media Communication. Vol. 21, No. 3. Retrieved from URL: http://www.asc.upenn.edu/courses/comm330/Vault/Comm330-Sp08/Harold.pdf
Improv In Toronto. (n.d). About. Retrieved from URL: http://improvintoronto.com/about-it/
