Magic or manipulation? What is FOOH and why do some creators prefer to call it VOOH?

A giant hand swiping the screen of a smartwatch on a ski slope. The Eiffel Tower wrapped in a down jacket. Car-sized handbags speeding through the streets. Miss Minutes "visiting" Krakow's Plac Św. Ducha. What do all these images have in common? They are united by the fact that… they never happened.

Before we move on to the spectacular examples of FOOH, however, it is worth remembering that marketers used similar tricks much earlier – long before CGI. When selling an OOH campaign to a client, a visualization was often prepared: graphics at a bus stop that did not actually exist yet. The question is: is this already Fake Out Of Home?

Ancy / On lemon

The beginnings: visualizations and 3D

Yes, if such an image makes its way to the internet and gains popularity, we can speak of FOOH. That is exactly how Gymbox worked, publishing "the first advertising campaign on bus roofs." The problem was that it was merely a visualization on a stock photo, and the advertisement itself never really existed.

However, it was only 3D billboards that sparked the mass imagination. At the end of 2021, videos of digital screens from which shoes or dragons seemed to jump out at the viewer went viral. Most internet users only knew them from video, because in real life they only worked from one specific point of view – like 3D graffiti on a pavement. This does not change the fact that the magic worked, and the videos spread virally.

When the 3D format began to lose its freshness, brands went a step further – towards FOOH.

Ancy / Kaufland

Virtual lashes and millions of views

One of the most famous examples became the Maybelline campaign. The video, in which a subway and buses drove past giant mascaras with "false eyelashes" attached, was viewed on the brand's Instagram more than 76 million times (as of January 30, 2024).

Why was CGI chosen? The reason is simple: savings. A real installation would mean the production costs of giant props, formalities related to urban space, assembly, and event management. The virtual realization allowed avoiding these expenses, and additionally guaranteed perfect conditions – without rain, breakdowns, or crowds.

The problem is that the image of real means of transport was used without the operators' consent. This raises questions about the boundaries of ethics – similar to the case of Gymbox, which advertised something that did not exist, and additionally misled about "priority."

From Hollywood to advertising

We know CGI techniques well from cinema – Godzilla in Tokyo or dinosaurs in the streets are nothing new. Now the same tricks are moving into marketing.

The Maybelline campaign was created by Ian Padgham (@origiful), who previously created surreal projects on Instagram. Other artists include Timo Helgert (@vacades) or the Lagom.cg studio.

Convincingly executed illusions evoke emotions similar to those once aroused by Orson Welles' radio "War of the Worlds" or films like the Blair Witch Project. Although we know it is fiction, we let ourselves get sucked in. No wonder, since – as the CEO of Maybelline admitted – the goal was to "trigger speculation whether the videos are real."

Ancy / Bakal

Where does illusion end and lie begin?

Some brands, like Jacquemus or Truff, build entire profiles in social media on this type of content. Users watch giant handbags or jars of sauce in completely unrealistic settings. Sometimes a note appears like "PS. this yacht is fictional," other times – complete silence, as in the case of Disney, which responded jokingly to questions "where can you see this."

And here a dilemma arises. Audiences, accustomed to fake news and deepfakes, may feel cheated. The illusion is often given away by details – lack of shadow, a too perfect shot, or unnatural reactions of people. But is it fair to leave the viewer with the role of a detective?

FOOH or VOOH?

Creators increasingly emphasize that they do not want to be associated with "fake." They prefer the term VOOH – Virtual Out Of Home. Virtual, meaning "digitally created, but looking real." This term better reflects the nature of the phenomenon and removes the weight of manipulation from it.

Illusion can be beautiful and inspiring – provided that the brand maintains a minimum of honesty and clearly signals that we are dealing with a convention. Then the magic of FOOH becomes a tool of creation, not a lie.