tourism commercials

I'm gonna step away from baby talk for a moment to throw out this one thing that I think is interesting / funny.

Did you watch any of the Olympics, and if so did you ever happen to see this commercial? The producers pulled out several big-name, and easily recognizable to US citizens Canadian superstars to talk it up and make it look appealing, including Michael J. Fox, Sarah McLachlan, Ryan Reynolds, Kim Cattrall, Steve Nash, and Eric McCormack. It's got a good tune and it shows off some incredible natural scenery, but every scene with those celebrities is totally fake. Take a close look, every one of them is in front of a green screen, on some sort of set that tries to match that which is presented behind them; NONE of them blend in with the scenery.

Don't get me wrong, I think BC is gorgeous, and I fully intend to visit and enjoy it because I'm sure it is as wonderful if not more so than it looks. I just think it's funny that these folks love their country so much that they can't be bothered with actually going there to film a promotional commercial. By comparison, this commercial for California ACTUALLY features the celebs at real places in California. Of course it probably cost a lot more to make, and my taxes probably helped with that, but at least it's real.

My favorite tourism / promotional commercial is still this one for New Zealand. Maybe it's the song, maybe its the scenery, maybe it's the fact that I've been there, but it still gets me a little choked up whenever I see it.