With the advent of the new millennium, society began to unusual phenomenon-flash mob. Literally, “flash mob” translates as “instant crowd”, but in essence it is a pre-prepared action in which a large group of people participates. It is usually held in a public place, where those gathered perform actions according to a pre-developed scenario.
Observers of a flash mob may have mixed feelings: surprise, joy, interest and even a desire to join what is happening. Nowadays, a lot of flash mobs are held every year. Which of them became the most unusual and memorable?
The most famous flash mobs in the world
1. “The first pancake is lumpy.” The very first flash mob was supposed to take place on June 3, 2003 in New York, but the organizers were prevented by police officers who learned about it in advance. After 2 weeks, the action still took place, because the participants learned about the time and place of its holding shortly before the start.
About 200 people gathered at the famous Macy's department store. They went to the department where they sold the most expensive carpet, told the surprised sellers that they all lived in a commune on the outskirts of the city and would like to buy this “rug of love.” Reaction of store employees was very controversial. Since then, flash mobs of all kinds have spread across America and other countries.
2. “Optical illusion.” This flash mob took place in a New York subway car. 15 pairs of twins in identical outfits sat opposite each other. The partners' movements were exactly identical. It seemed that ordinary passengers were sitting on one side, and a reflective mirror was installed on the other.
Not all observers could withstand such a psychological optical illusion. Someone showed interest and filmed what was happening, while others, on the contrary, left before the desired station.
3. “The sea is agitated once...”. It was an ordinary day in March 2007, the supermarket in Manchester (England) was operating as usual. Suddenly, 50 customers froze in place, motionless. After 4 minutes they continued to move as usual.
Not everyone who was in the same store understood what happened. But the security guards, who were monitoring the situation using surveillance cameras, were extremely puzzled by what happened.
4. "Mr. Mandela, you will not die this week." In honor of the famous human rights activist and former president South Africa, who died in 1999, Woolworthsfood store employees interrupted their work /
Together with the church choir, they soulfully sang the song “Gospel Flash Mob”, which aroused admiration and applause from the visitors.
5. "Stop time". This is one of the most famous flash mobs, which is held everywhere. Its essence is simple: participants freeze in the middle of some action in order to achieve the effect of stopping time. A crowd or even one person can participate in such an action.
A video featuring the participation of her entire campaign headquarters in the “Stop Time” flash mob gained great popularity on the Internet.
6. “To a gift horse...”. The initiator of one of the most interesting psychological flash mobs in the world was American comedian Jimmy Kimmel. From the TV screen, he invited parents to make fun of their children and wrap them in beautiful wrapping as Christmas gifts. various items, which children definitely would not want to receive for Christmas.
Many parents supported the idea and gave their children “amazing” things like a stick of sausage, a pack of pasta or a roll of toilet paper. Some received a doll instead of the expected car, while others toy instruments instead of the desired Barbie. Some moms and dads filmed their children's reactions, and the videos then broke popularity records on YouTube.
7. “Music connected us”. The most positive flash mobs are music and dance ones. They always make you smile and give good mood to others. For example, on the morning of April 20, 2009 in London, a hundred girls in tight dark swimsuits came out to Piccadilly Circus. They all performed a synchronized dance to the hit song “Single Ladies.” The action not only caused a sensation among passers-by, but also stopped the movement of cars passing by.
That same year, on August 29, 14,000 residents of Mexico City, dressed in zombie costumes, performed a dance from the video for the legendary “Thriller.”
The most famous flash mobs in Russia
In Russia, activists do not lag behind foreign mobbers and organize their own flash mobs, which also become widely known.
1. “A smile will make the day brighter”. In 2008, on a September day, 9,000 residents of Chelyabinsk gathered on Republic Square with common goal. Putting it on outerwear yellow color, they lined up in such a way that, looking at everything that was happening from above, one could see a large smiley face with a diameter of 75 m.
This "smiling face", made up of townspeople, was addressed to . The picture of what was happening was captured by the QuickBird satellite, as a result of which it ended up on Google maps.
2. “Pillow battles”. Who didn't play pillow fight as a child? What happens when the fun of youth develops into an adult flash mob? It turns out to be a planned action called “Pillow Battles”!
At the signal, the participants take out pillows, and a life-or-death fight begins. Down and feathers are flying everywhere. Participants receive a strong adrenaline rush, and observers are seriously surprised. Nowadays there are even special clubs for holding such flash mobs.
3. “Pouring water”. Flash mobs are common now, especially in the hot season, when people pour water on each other en masse. Everyone is happy, happy and not hot. But such actions sometimes also have a social component. In 2014, a special campaign called the “Ice Bucket Challenge” was carried out in Russia, America and some European countries. Its goal was to attract public attention to people with a serious disease - amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Since New Yorkers staged the first ever flash mob on June 17, 2003, the world has never ceased to be amazed. Intricate activists pretend to be zombies, drop their pants in the subway and raise thousands of Chinese lanterns to the sky. What are the most famous flash mobs that took place in Russia?
When and how did the first flash mob take place in Russia?
On August 16, 2003, St. Petersburg and Muscovites, coordinating through LiveJournal, went to the platforms of railway stations. At the hour of arrival of the train from St. Petersburg, mobbers lined up on the platform of the Leningradsky station, showing a sign with the strange inscription “NzR178qWE”The first flash mob in Russia took place at the station. Their “colleagues” in the City on the Neva, having settled at the Moscow station, were waiting for an honorary member of the Society of Alcoholics Anonymous - Tatyana Lavrukhina, returning from the capital. Unlike the failed attempt to collectively applaud the fountain at the Nerezinovaya Main Department Store, the station flash mob went off with a bang.
Rating of the most interesting Russian flash mobs
The fame of the country's first "instant crowd" spread throughout the world. Russia was gripped by a real fever. Residents of Perm en masse offered prayers to the monument to the “eternally living” Ilyich, and Muscovites blew bubble in the middle of Arbat and depicted the “Rug of Love” on the Patriarchal Bridge. But it was not these planned actions that won our hearts and shook our imaginations.
Flash mobs with soap bubbles are popular in Russia
Let's dance with Milka
In October 2009, one of the Moscow supermarkets turned into a branch of the Alps. Dozens of flashmobbers, following the example of the cheerful cashier, began to hum catchy Austrian songs and dance wildly. Moving their shoulders, moving their butts and clicking their heels, they filled the entire store with fun. Everyone who was not “stuck” to the cameras - old women, children, and respectable gentlemen in suits - was momentarily transported to the endless emerald meadows of the picturesque mountain range. This holiday became the most memorable advertisement for Milka chocolate.
“Chocolate” flash mob was liked by many Russians
Don't be afraid of the cold - wash yourself up to your waist
The healthiest flash mob, designed to draw attention to the problem of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is known to the entire planet. Accepting the challenge of a man who has already risked dousing himself with a bucket of icy water, three people continue the Ice Bucket Challenge relay. Those who do not believe the saying “If you are toughened up at a young age, you will be good for the rest of your life,” are obliged to make donations to the fund for the study of an incurable disease. In Russian version mass event, which became popular after the dousing of Mark Zuckerberg, has already been attended by the co-owner of Mail.ru Group, the founder of VKontakte and the creator of Qip.Giraffe VKontakte
A couple of years ago, a craze hit social media. All the avatars featured giraffes: cartoon and real, lying and standing, scary and cute. The reason for such love for animals turned out to be unsolved mystery, set by the organizers of the flash mob. Those who could not count the number of legs in a room containing a bed, two dogs, a giraffe, five hippos and four cats were forced to put a photo of the slowest-witted creature on the planet on their profile for three days. Since the task was a tricky one, and few people thought of adding sofa legs and their own limbs to the list, friendship with the giraffe reached truly cosmic proportions.
Giraffe is the most popular flash mob on VKontakte
Pensioners are “on fire”
Not only young people are ready to play pranks by taking part in unusual flash mobs. On May 18, 2011, three hundred old people filled the Moscow subway. Pushing into the depths of the crowded carriages, they kicked younger passengers out of their seats and sat down near the aisle. Elderly people were not at all busy raising the younger generation. The leaflets they distributed called for starting a family and having children. Demonstrating that soon there simply won’t be enough room for all the pensioners in the world, they not only solved the demographic problem, but also communicated, remembered their youth and simply sang old songs.
Flash mob of pensioners in the Moscow metro
Read, bookworm, don’t spare your eyes
For 4 years in a row, a book flash mob has been organized in Pervomaisky Park in Novosibirsk. While checking their watches at the city hall, protesters disperse around the fountain and take out pulp novels. For half an hour, their books find a voice: mobbers, walking along the alleys or relaxing on benches, read aloud the works of Arthur Conan Doyle and Leo Tolstoy, life lessons from Confucius and Irina Khakamada.
Flash mob “Living Library” in Novosibirsk Then, without saying a word, they scatter in different directions. The purpose of this cultural event– arouse interest in the “Living Library” project, which offers to communicate with representatives of different walks of life, from the homeless to the millionaire.
"Macbeth" at the Baltic House
The day before the premiere of Macbeth at the Baltic House, scheduled for May 30, 2014, St. Petersburg residents, actors and guests of the city gathered near the theater building and recited the words of the brilliant Shakespeare into a megaphone. The action, organized by the St. Petersburg edition of the Metro publication, caused a huge stir. Despite pouring rain, students from the University of Physical Education and youth from South Korea, elderly St. Petersburg residents and their young grandchildren caused tears, expressively reading sonnets, and stormy applause, echoing the crazy Othello. Every fan of the great playwright received invitations to the premiere of the sensational play.
Theatrical flash mob in St. Petersburg But one of the bizarre ideas implemented by the creative organizers of flash mobs completely went out of the general rut of dancing, singing and dousing.
The most interesting flash mob in Russian history
The bearded beauty Conchita Wurst, who shocked the world with her erotic performance at Eurovision, evoked many different emotions. While the parents, shedding tears of joy, called the overgrown “lady” the daughter they had always dreamed of, the Russian men set out to prove that they were not Conchita. Taking hold of razors and armed with cameras, the knights got rid of their beards and showed photos of their smooth chins on Instagram, Vkontakte and Odnoklassniki. Dominic Joker, Rodion Gazmanov and Andrei Malakhov turned out to be real men.
Flash mob in honor of Conchita Wurst Flash mobs often take place in squares and stadiums. But there are also other events taking place there.
Flashmob ((English flash mob (flash - flash, moment, moment; mob - crowd, gathering) - instant crowd))- a large group of people that performs some similar actions and then disperses.
What is a flash mob
Examples physical actions participants (offline flash mobs):
After the flash mob, its participants meet physically or virtually, get acquainted, discuss the results of the action, plan further actions, come up with new flash mob scenarios and their goals.
Rice. 1. Example of a chain letter
One of the most widespread and popular offline flash mobs around the world is the dance flash mob.
Flash mobs on the Internet can occur spontaneously - in the form of comments on a funny post, variations of an interesting video story, or be planned when members of a group on a social network are given a task: put a picture on their avatar, answer a few questions and “pass the baton” to other users ( ask them to continue).
Flash mob on the Internet: history and features
Before the advent of the Internet, chain letters were common. The tradition (especially among children) of sending “chain letters” was reminiscent of a modern “flash mob.”
The letters said that the letter needed to be rewritten and sent to several acquaintances within a certain period. Many people took part in this game (Fig. 1).
With the advent of the Internet, this tradition was revived, acquired new forms and was called “flash mob”. Flash mob distribution environment - Email, social media, forums, chats, video services.
How do flash mobs happen?
1) Flash mobs on the Internet can occur spontaneously. For example, in comments to posts, surveys - with the aim of having fun, having fun.
2) An Internet flash mob can be planned:
- to promote a website, brand, personality;
- for the purpose of conducting a hidden advertising campaign;
- in order to control the political sentiments of the masses.
The concepts of “advertising”, “political”, “social” flash mobs appeared. And also professional flash mobs - proflashes. All these actions in their goals, objectives, features of organization and implementation are the opposite of a regular flash mob. They contradict its original rules and principles.
The main (“classic”) goals and objectives of the flash mob
Flash mobs are made for random spectators, causing them feelings of confusion, misunderstanding, surprise, interest, delight and even a desire to join.
People take part in a flash mob with the aim of:
- have fun;
- feel freedom from society’s stereotypes and norms of behavior;
- capture the attention of others;
- assert oneself;
- get rid of complexes;
- get a “dose of adrenaline”;
- feel unity with other people;
- feel involved in a common action;
- get the effect of a “group psychotherapy” session;
- emotionally recharge (discharge);
- Find friends.
These goals are achieved using the “crowd effect.”
Flash mob participants - in Everyday life often serious, more or less successful people. The reason for participation in such actions, as a number of psychologists explain, is fatigue from everyday worries and routine.
Flash mob rules and principles
1) The director (leader) of a flash mob is often unknown.
2) The action should seem spontaneous.
3) Initially it was assumed that the flash mob should not contain advertising elements; be of a political, propaganda nature; have financial goals. But such flash mobs (in pure form) are rare. The listed elements are most often present in the promotion.
5) Flash mob participants (ideally strangers) should not show that they are connected by something. They should appear to be random participants: Internet users, “ordinary passers-by.”
6) The actions of the participants in the action can cause bewilderment, surprise, fun and delight. But the flash mob participants themselves do everything with a serious look.
7) The flash mob scenario (for outside observers) may seem absurd (the actions of the participants defy logic). For example, freeze in a certain position, circle a bottle on the asphalt with chalk, shoot a video that is meaningless in content.
However, the goals of the action can be clearly visible: to ridicule or condemn a certain media personality; achieve a specific result (for example, influence the course of the trial by mass commenting and filing petitions, etc.).
Surely everyone has heard and, perhaps, became a participant Ice Bucket Challenge(Douse test cold water), popular in 2014. The purpose of this campaign was to draw people's attention to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, which causes muscle paralysis. The pioneer and founder of this flash mob was baseball player Pete Freis, who suffered from this disease.
According to the rules, the participant had to pour himself or plunge into cold water, contribute $10 ($100 if he did not accept the challenge) in support of the association of patients with amyotrophic sclerosis and choose the next 3 people. 24 hours were given to complete the task. The flash mob gained popularity instantly, thanks to the participation of many famous people such as Bill Gates, Dr. Dre, Stephen King, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, Mark Zuckerberg and others.
We can say that the goal of this challenge was successfully achieved. People not only learned about the incurable disease of the central nervous system, but also collected quite a large amount. Thanks to the Ice Bucket Challenge, over $100 million has been donated to the association.
#Don'tjudgechallenge(from the English “don’t judge” - don’t judge) is one of the most beloved by social network users around the world.
The source of this flash mob is not exactly known. It is believed to be linked to a video by British beauty blogger, Em Ford. A girl who has severe acne filmed and published a video of her transformation using makeup, and the whole process was accompanied by screenshots of negative comments about Em’s appearance.
In contrast to this sad video, people began actively posting videos on Instagram and Facebook that demonstrated the superiority of ordinary appearance.
#Dontjudgeme Challengers at the beginning frightened followers with completely strange and partially “wild” makeup, and then delighted amazing transformation. By the way, the video of young Dimash Adilet has gained the most popularity in Kazakhstan.
Not only #Don’tjudgemechallenge related to appearance, were interesting to the Internet community, but also #thepowerofmakeup(from English “the power of makeup”).
This flash mob was a response and continuation of a video by professional makeup artist and part-time beauty blogger Nikki de Jager. In her video, the girl demonstrates the full power of makeup, having painted only half her face, leaving the other half for comparison. The idea and purpose of the photos posted is to prove that girls should love and be loved both with and without makeup.
For better or worse, the hashtag #Distractinglysexy(from English “distractingly attractive”) was not popular in Kazakhstan.
It became one of many ways to fight for gender equality, and the initiator of #Distractinglysexy was a public statement Nobel laureate in Physiology and Medicine Tim Hunt. The scientist made a careless statement that employees of opposite sexes often fall in love, and subsequently women cry even because of criticism.
Scientists and workers of the fairer sex did not remain in debt and began to publish photos with their opinions on this matter. The hashtag #distructinglysexy demonstrated women's confidence in their work and ability to control their emotions.
Have any of you ever been so tired at work that you couldn’t lie down and rest? This is exactly the mistake a young resident doctor made in Mexico.
An article with a photo blaming a sleeping guy prompted doctors around the world to support the poor guy and fill social networks with themselves dozing off at work. Under the hashtag #I also lay down, or in the original #YoTambienMeDormi, doctors say that their work is not easy, and there is practically no time for sleep even at home. For those who are not doctors this good lesson, because those who care and save lives also need rest.
Challenges demonstrating beauty, that is, the thinness of users are:
1) touching the navel with your hand across your back;
2) measuring the number of coins that fit into the clavicular cavity.
Flash mobs caused absolutely different opinions, but to be honest, many have tried to do this. Some doubted the possibility of touching the navel in this way, while others did not have an extra coin. But it’s difficult to deny the popularity and interest in these tasks on Instagram.
Whispers Challenge(YouTuber Whispers) Everyone should try it, if only because it's fun.
The idea is that one person wearing headphones is trying to read the lips of the words spoken by the interlocutor. It can be anything: a phrase, a word or a whole sentence, but the result is almost always the same: a lot of positive emotions. This flash mob not only brings you closer together, but also evaluates your ability to communicate using vision. Therefore, Eldana Forais also posted her version of this challenge.
One of the newest, but very cute of all flash mobs, was #Cheeriochallenge. Knowledgeable Having fun, the fathers decided to give themselves a gift for Father's Day.
Invented and started by one of the All you need to be happy is a sleeping baby, a lot of Cheerios and great patience. The one who builds the most high tower on the nose or forehead of your baby, he won. And fathers who don’t have cereal in their cupboards confidently replace them with cupcakes, muffins, and even the boxes themselves. Moms and wives of merry dads can only admire the intelligence of their chosen ones.
After viewing photos using the following hashtag, you can forget about Photoshop and the ideals from the cover. It is dedicated to yoga and confident girls. They prove that the stereotypes about sports that the media instill in us are completely meaningless.
Under the hashtag #SizeDoesntMatter you will find thousands of inspiring examples. People with a figure far from a model perform a variety of asanas and look amazing. Ultimately, all boundaries are only in our heads, and the popular flash mob is just a small push to reconsider our opinion.
The last one, not quite a flash mob, but rather a call #followmeto(from English “follow me”) cannot be ignored.
Created completely by accident by Murad and Natalia Osmann, it penetrated the hearts of many people and became popular all over the world. The young man took a photograph of the girl who walked in front and held his hand. The most amazingly beautiful and deep photographs different corners planets with the caption #followmeto continue, and probably won’t stop posting to couples in love.
If the number of followers of the movement’s creators has reached more than 4 million, then there are hundreds of times more captured moments from this angle. There are also many parodies on #FollowMeTo, which are very popular.
Friends, have you ever taken part in flash mob- mass actions in which large groups people gather in in public places and carry out pre-planned actions, and then disperse?
From the outside flash mobs are very similar to mass attacks of madness, however, they perform more harmless functions - to diversify people’s lives, to feel free from existing stereotypes of behavior, to get emotional recharge, and just to have fun.
People are always looking for something to do when they are bored. Therefore, flash mobs became the first stage in the emergence of various movements, such as Ice bucket challenge, scotchers, plankers, smack cam, Owlers, hadoukeningers, batmaning, duckmanning and others.
Only one question arises: where does all this come into people’s heads? 🙂 Today we decided to prepare for you a selection that contains the best flash mobs and the most prominent representatives modern movements . Go!
Scotchers
As part of the “scotching” movement, people wrap themselves in tape, take pictures, post them online and compete to see who can make it funnier. 🙂 Just look!
Plankers
Plankers try to surprise the people around them with their ability to be in horizontal position in unexpected places. Looking at the plankers, you are once again convinced that people's imagination is limitless!
Our favorite)) 
Duckmanning
Hearing this terrible word, You'll probably say Whatafuck? We will explain that people participating in dakmanning are, as it were, competing in the skill of creating optical illusions. People hide their own heads, and their friends play along with their heads to make a funny photo. Look what usually comes out of this!
Ice bucket challenge
Ice bucket challenge is a movement that had a charitable purpose— raising people's awareness about amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and helping people suffering from this disease.
During the movement it was necessary to pass the test with a bucket of ice water and challenge other people. This is the movement in short time flew around the world and affected many famous people, who also did not hesitate to douse themselves with ice water.
It must be said that some people even went overboard with this, resulting in funny videos. Take a look!
Smack Cam Movement
A very fun and at the same time cruel movement - Smack cam , in which you need to make fun of your friends and hit them on the cheek. To be honest, we feel like some people went overboard with the punches, to put it mildly.
Now let's move on to the largest and oldest of movements - flash mobs. Let's look at the five most striking ones, from the idea to the execution.
5th place - New York, 2010, dance flash mob to popular songs.
4th place - we will pay tribute to the premiere of the film Deadpool.
3rd place - station flash mob, a group of people froze at the same time and then began to move, it looks very interesting and spectacular.
2nd place— USA, Soccer game, one of the largest flash mobs.
