A day in Auckland

This video portrays a day in the life of Auckland. I like videos that evoke the feeling of place, sometimes even more than videos that showcase sights and sounds. Matched with an original score by Aaron Christie of Woodcut Productions (according to a reply left on YouTube), the video is especially evocative and effective. I like it.

However, as much as I like the video, I absolutely loathe the name of the marketing campaign behind the video: “BIG Little City.” A project of Auckland business promotion group Heart of the City, the name is, in my opinion, incredibly stupid. What the hell does it even mean? The assault on typography that is the uppercase “BIG” seems to suggest they’re saying that Auckland is a little city with big city touches or ambitions. If someone from elsewhere in New Zealand, or in Australia, had called Auckland that, people would think it was insulting and condescending.

Still, the stupid name of the promotion campaign doesn’t cancel out the worth of the video. I’d like to see more videos like it. In fact, one announcing a new name for the promotion campaign could be a great next choice…