VW: The Dark Side. Greenpeace Protests Volkswagon by Mocking "The Force" Ad and Pulling A Big PR Stunt in London.

Claiming that Volkswagon, whose charming television ad for the Passat, "The Force", is a fan favorite and award-winner, emits harmful CO2 emissions, Greenpeace of the UK has organized a large PR stunt in protest.


above: a still from the Volkswagon "The Force" by ad agency Deutsch.

According to Greenpeace UK, automotive brand Volkswagon opposes the European climate laws. In its report, 'The Dark Side of Volkswagen', Greenpeace complains that Europe's largest car manufacturer has purposely restricted its most fuel efficient engines to a tiny minority of vehicles, and then drastically increased the price for consumers.



Unfortunately, the memorable and likeable tv ad served as a perfect target for their message "Welcome To The Dark Side."

The original VW The Force Ad from Deutsch:


Greenpeace created their own parody of the popular ad which, because of a LucasFilms copyright violation, has been pulled from YouTube and Vimeo and other articles on the web. However, here it is from EFE of the UK news (with newscaster talking over it, sorry):

VW: The Dark Side ad from Greenpeace:

Greenpeace Reveals Volkswagen's "Dark Side" by NewsLook

The PR Stunt


The PR stunt began early the morning of June 28th in London's 'Silicon Roundabout" on Old Street. Two teams of climbers scaled the largest billboard ad space in the city to post four banners starring Darth Vader and a VW logo.




As rush hour approached multiple people dressed as Star Wars stormtroopers began standing on boomboxes in the area, broadcasting the Imperial March music, while volunteers gave out flyers and explained the issues to the public.





Later the men in white gathered around the Foundry in the heart of Shoreditch as a second banner unrolled and thousands of people passed en route to work.




Greenpeace has a site that asks you to "Join The Rebellion" here.

images and info courtesy of Greenpeace UK and the EPA

Star Wars Carved Crayons; Darth, Chewbacca, C3PO and StormTrooper

above: photo by Mark Merlot.

Although these carved crayons were not made by Diem Chau, whose many crayola sculptures I've shared with you in the past, the Star Wars Crayolas were made by Steve Thompson and have been featured on many a geek and sci-fi blog. If you haven't seen them, here's a good look:






But where's the green Yoda??

Dreaming Of The Dark Side: A Sexy Star Wars Photo Editorial For Star Wars Day!

As odd as it may seem to some, there are people who find Star Wars very arousing. Sure the lightsabers are phallic and there's a lot of heavy breathing, but canoodling with a Stormtrooper? “Dreaming of the Dark Side” is a photographic editorial of a young girl - dressed as a Twi'lek- lustfully dreaming about Darth Vader and a Stormtrooper, too.

Note: Today is the official Star Wars Day, so tweet this with #starwarsday!



Recently shot by Marie-Louise Cadosch of Marc & Louis photography (as a tribute to the photographer's Star Wars-loving sister Kathrin), the editorial stars the beautiful Maura Waller from OPTION Models dreamily cavorting with members of the Dark Side.














Swiss Garrison provided the photographers with Darth Vader and the stormtroopers and the makeup was done by Lilith Amrad.

Behind the Scenes video:


Credits:
Photographer: Marie-Louise Cadosch
Makeup Artist: Lilith Amrad
Model: Maura Waller @ OPTION Model Agency
Costumes: Swiss Garrison (Darth Vader and stormtrooper)
Kathrin Phan (tentacles), Marie-Louise Cadosch (twi'lek dress)

Star Wars, its characters, costumes, and all associated items are the intellectual property of Lucasfilm. ©2008 Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM All rights reserved.


About Marc & Louis:

above: photographer Marie-Louise Cadosch and production manager, Gian Marc Cadosch

Marc & Louis Photography is a team of photographers who do far more than just conveying the ineffable. They are creators and ambassadors of art which fuels the imagination. Their images are coined by a wide range of influences that still manage to accumulate to form one harmonic overall picture. They tell stories one cannot grasp at just one quick glance. Their images are mystical, dreamful and emotional, almost as if they are drawn by eras, separated by a hundred years, yet they still harbor authenticity and harmony.

Marc & Louis follow a distinctive style that can be found in each and every picture. A style that never bores the eyes of the beholder. Their attention to detail and authentic scenery grants every image an individual ambiance, transforming it into one beautiful piece of art and the story behind it into an epos.

Marc & Louis find the inspiration behind their visual tales in movies and music. They prefer using reality as a setting since natural environments combined with extreme or atypical props allow for a much broader range of possibilities. Marc & Louis images are meticulously prepared works of art which capture moments, emotions, even dreams and coalesce them into one memorable story.