Kids—some too young to hold a driver’s permit, others too small to peer over the steering wheel of a car—were the preferred guests at last night’s “Chevy Rocks the Future” event, held at the Buena Vista lot at Walt Disney Studios. Part of the car manufacturer’s “Driving Hollywood Green” campaign, the event exposed Hollywood’s youngest celebrities, local schoolchildren, and a selection of kids who had won the opportunity to attend (through call-in contests to Radio Disney or an online sweepstakes at Disney.com) to Chevy’s line of gas-friendly and gas-free cars.
“We wanted to engage tomorrow’s influencers while introducing them and their families to Chevy’s lineup of new technologies and vehicles in a fun and interactive way,” said Christie Conti, experiential marketing director for the public relations division of General Motor’s R Works, an in-house promotions agency that formulated the event concept along with the company’s Western region general manager, Susan Docherty.The team turned to Along Came Mary’s Janine Micucci, who collaborated with Keith Greco on art direction, to execute its vision. Five “biospheres”—skeletal dome structures—each highlighted a Chevy vehicle and offering attendees interactive opportunities to learn about the green technology that powers each machine. Kids raced mini fuel-cell vehicles against one another, experimented with hybrid creations in a science-lab-like environment where they could make candles out of soy, and posed for pictures while touching a Van de Graaf generator, which would have made their hair stand on end were it not for damp weather.
Guests who went home with a photo could insert the image into the event invitation: a mouse pad that also acted as a frame designed by Along Came Mary’s Brenda Luginbill, who used 100 percent recycled tires to created the pad. Other environmentally friendly touches included a green (both in color and eco-mindedness) carpet made from recycled glass, a 100-foot-long hedgerow step-and-repeat with attached signage made from recycled paper, and a kid-friendly menu including mini hamburgers and pizza made with organic and locally grown ingredients.
Tweens—and a surprising number of adults—crowded in front of the stage for an end-of-night performance by the Jonas Brothers.
Correction: This story has been updated from its original form to correct the spelling of Brenda Luginbill's name and Christie Conti's title.
“We wanted to engage tomorrow’s influencers while introducing them and their families to Chevy’s lineup of new technologies and vehicles in a fun and interactive way,” said Christie Conti, experiential marketing director for the public relations division of General Motor’s R Works, an in-house promotions agency that formulated the event concept along with the company’s Western region general manager, Susan Docherty.The team turned to Along Came Mary’s Janine Micucci, who collaborated with Keith Greco on art direction, to execute its vision. Five “biospheres”—skeletal dome structures—each highlighted a Chevy vehicle and offering attendees interactive opportunities to learn about the green technology that powers each machine. Kids raced mini fuel-cell vehicles against one another, experimented with hybrid creations in a science-lab-like environment where they could make candles out of soy, and posed for pictures while touching a Van de Graaf generator, which would have made their hair stand on end were it not for damp weather.
Guests who went home with a photo could insert the image into the event invitation: a mouse pad that also acted as a frame designed by Along Came Mary’s Brenda Luginbill, who used 100 percent recycled tires to created the pad. Other environmentally friendly touches included a green (both in color and eco-mindedness) carpet made from recycled glass, a 100-foot-long hedgerow step-and-repeat with attached signage made from recycled paper, and a kid-friendly menu including mini hamburgers and pizza made with organic and locally grown ingredients.
Tweens—and a surprising number of adults—crowded in front of the stage for an end-of-night performance by the Jonas Brothers.
Correction: This story has been updated from its original form to correct the spelling of Brenda Luginbill's name and Christie Conti's title.
Photo: Sean Twomey
Photo:Sean Twomey
Photo: John Shearer/WireImage.com
Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage.com
Photo: John Shearer/WireImage.com
Photos: Chris Polk/WireImage.com
Photos: Chris Polk/WireImage.com