Why is this work relevant for Media?

To install Cross Shinjuku Vision, one of the biggest screens in Japan, we launched 3D content on this digital signage screen. We released 3D giant cat content utilizing 3D outdoor media characteristics, which made people feel the cat actually lives in the building. Not only passersby, but also other people came over just to watch the content as it’s a landmark, and it immediately spread and became a hot topic among the people.

Background

While outdoor digital signage screens are cropped up all across Tokyo, we tried not only to create outdoor digital content that would instantly grab passersby’s attention but also to give a role to the video content in the city to make the outdoor digital signage screen itself to become a landmark. Since virtual character is already not something new to the people, we proposed to create engagement between user and digital character not on metaverse platform or VR space, but at Cross Shinjuku Vision, urban outdoor digital signage. The virtual character which has an address that the user would need to go to the place to meet the character.

Describe the creative idea / insights (30% of vote)

As we prepared to install Cross Shinjuku Vision, a new digital signage screen in the heart of Tokyo, we decided to create content that would not just catch the eye but transform digital signage into a destination.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

In Japan, there are many characters that belong to the cities, such as character billboards, Gundam, and Godzilla monuments. The traditional Jizo is also one of the examples, so there has been a culture that accepts such things as animism. So we decided to use a cat as a character, a universally loved animal. We created Japan's first virtual "character" you can meet in Shinjuku. We designed it not just as a commercial video, but as a landmark of Shinjuku, with the "presence" of a real giant cat living on top of the building.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

On the morning of July 1, 2021, passersby stopped in their tracks as they watched a huge computer-generated calico cat wake up on a 150-square-meter digital signage screen. Not only as 3D video content, but also we designed it as if the giant cat actually lives in the building; the cat wakes up in the morning as the screen starts broadcasting, appears several times during the daytime, and goes to sleep at night. We directed to make passersby feel the cat’s presence using cat’s characteristics such as it prefers somewhere high and narrow and interplay of the cat’s emotions with its ears and tail. The cat’s changing behavior over the day makes it seem as if there is a real giant cat living inside the screen and creates a more intimate connection with passersby.

List the results (30% of vote)

The giant cat of Cross Shinjuku Vision became a sensation. It enjoyed media coverage from around the world and went viral on social media. People flocked to watch the cat from all over the country. For the first time, people felt joy and excitement from watching a digital signage screen. Many fan fiction appeared and spread through social media. The phenomenon of the background story developing on social media showed the potential of this new entertainment media created with fans' participation beyond the boundaries of urban outdoor signage. As a result, foot traffic to the area increased by 67%. In six months, we received over 1,000 ad inquiries and implemented over 100 ads on our screen.