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Wigan Council Video Goes Viral

A new video from Wigan Council urging businesses to invest in the town has gone viral, thanks to the unusual approach the film makers have used.

The two-minute video, titled Hyperbrain satellite says: “Invest in Wigan”, has been viewed more than 250k times in the first 2 weeks since its release. The video can be viewed here.

Presented in the style of a spoof breaking news report, the film opens with a very serious tone alerting viewers that the famous ‘Hyperbrain’ computer is just about to reveal the results of its search for the next global business hotspot. As the computer is about to go live to the world, the video takes a turn into absurdity and the entire screen fills with futuristic graphics and computer generated images.

We then meet the Hyperbrain computer itself, a giant floating head which resembles something from a 90’s virtual reality game, who quickly informs the world that the next big business hotspot is… Wigan.

‘It’s Wigan,’ repeats the disembodied head over and over whilst relaying facts about the towns infrastructure and amenities. The video transmission then ends with Hyperbrain singing ‘I love Wigan’ to the tune of Grieg’s ‘In the Hall of the Mountain King’, much to the newsreader’s confusion.

The video is unlike any promotional video we’ve seen released by a local council before. It gets its point across, but it does so in a way which has got people talking and sharing – it is obviously doing something right, as the views continue to grow.

With such a unique campaign turning viral, will this be the beginning of councils using imaginative ways to help drive investment into their areas? If so, just remember – Wigan was there first.

For more information on the background of the Hyperbrain video, visit http://www.wiganworks.com

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Mike Jeavons .