Here’s the deal with crows. They are basically flying monkeys. Their brains are as large as a monkey’s brain of their size would be; much larger than other birds. Remember the Wizard of Oz? That pack of flying primates that hunted Dorothy and her companions had nothing (stylish hats and coats aside) on the crows that roam your backyard. The monkeys seemed only to express the emotion of fear or anger, and were fully under the control of the Wicked Witch of the West. Heck in the movie they couldn’t even speak! Crows, on the other hand, always seem to express their free will. They can imitate human voice and often do so! In Montana, one crow was so adept at mimicking a master’s “Here Boy, Come Boy” that it could call dogs, and did so on many occasions. This talking crow even assembled a pack of mutts by flying from house to house and fooling dogs into thinking they were following their owner! With his pack in tow, the crow headed to the University of Montana campus, kept them at attention beneath a tree, and ran them through students as they walked between classrooms! For fun or to possibly dislodge a sandwich remains unknown, but certainly Oz’s monkeys couldn’t do that!
Book – Gifts of the Crow: How Perception, Emotion, and Thought Allow Smart Birds to Behave Like Humans
Keep reading: Amazon Blogs – Are Crows Smarter Than Us? John Marzluff Explains
For the record, Los Angeles-based social media agency Jetset Studios created the Facebook Timeline for ‘ted’ ( http://www.facebook.com/tedisreal ). As one of the first entertainment marketing campaigns to leverage Facebook’s Timeline feature to its full storytelling advantage, Jetset Studios rolled out a steady stream of original content that introduced the pot-smoking teddy bear to the world. The ‘ted’ Timeline served as a ‘prequel’ to the events in the movie — beginning with details of the character’s back story — and quickly coalesced into a voice that remained consistent throughout the life cycle of the film’s theatrical release, and beyond.
The campaign is a winning example of the power of social media. By creating an ancillary world of original content, the campaign infused life and authenticity into a new and untested entertainment brand. By using Facebook’s Timeline as a platform to broadcast original content, the campaign resulted in a ‘ted’-branded channel with a viewership on par with a cable network. As of August 4, 2012, ‘ted’ has amassed over 2.8 million Facebook fans, who continue to demonstrate their love and support of the film through their comments, Likes, and shares.
It is important to note tha the ‘ted’ Facebook campaign was made possible by the studio and the filmmakers who entrusted Jetset Studios to be the social media voice of ‘ted’ on Facebook, allowing us the freedom to push the boundries of movie marketing and to demonstrate the true potential of social media.
Patrick Young
President and Co-Founder
Jetset Studios
htttp://www.jetsetstudios.com