Nothing Beats Reality 2004
Thinking of a loved one and calling them a moment before a car crashes into the living room, thus saving their lives as they get up from the couch to answer the phone. Is it just a coincidence? The world is full of true almost unbelievable stories like this. They are found in reports written by doctors, newspapers, insurance reports, police documents and many other reliable sources. The proposed “Nothing Beats Reality” project is to tap into this vast source of true documented stories and select the most breathtaking. Tentatively recreating these exceptional moments in a cinematic art style, with a vivid sense of atmosphere and scenic compositions. The project will explore the universe what’s between reality and the spiritual dimension. We’ll work with themes such as intuition, karma, coincidences, or is there life after death.
“Nothing Beats Reality” was a rebelious campaign that structured the communication around “some of life’s big questions”, that teenagers start to ponder to help construct their identity. The world is full of unbelievable but true stories. These stories were recreated in a stylish cool way, and could be further experienced and shared online with real photos, real police reports and newspaper articles etc. Pierre Winther created this campaign for Energie jeans.
CASE STUDY #1: KARMA
A car mechanic, was hired to fix the brakes of a car. But without finishing the job, he leaves work to meet his brother for drinks and doesn’t return. Later that afternoon, Tu Whatanavi and his gang come by to pick up the car. Afterwards, they take a shortcut through the forest, where they run into the drunk mechanic. The breaks don’t work. Jake was seriously injured in the accident.
CASE STUDY #4: LIFE AFTER DEATH
Leon Huygen was born blind. On July 11th, 1994, he was the victim of a burglary in his own house, where he was shot in the head. He was pronounced dead by the first police officer to arrive at the scene, but the paramedics were able to resuscitate him. Later, officer N.J. Engelwood and his fellow officer A. Liebermann reported that they had seen Mr. Huygen float upwards and hover above his body for a while before disappearing through the ceiling. Talking to the police himself, Mr. Huygens could describe in every detail what had happened in that room. He knew the exact number of people that had been there, knew exactly what they looked like, and even knew what clothes they were wearing, even though he was blind.
CASE STUDY #2: INTUITION
Iceland – a late October night in 1989. Sven Rifkinsson was on his way back home from work. For some reason, he had an unusual urge to call his girlfriend Chaise. He stopped at a gas station at 9:20 pm. Unfortunately, there was no telephone available. As he passed a phone on the roadside at 9:25 pm, he stopped for a second time, but the phone was out of order. Desperate, Sven ran across the street to borrow a family’s telephone. Finally, at 9:30 pm, he made his call. At that exact moment, a drunk 23-year-old driver lost control of his car and crashed into Sven and Chaise’s house, ending his ride in the bedroom where Chaise and her little son had been only seconds before. The driver was killed instantly in the collision, but Chaise and her 2-year-old son were saved by Sven’s phone call.
CASE STUDY #3: COINCIDENCE
On February 5th, 1797, a ship carrying 121 passengers sank off the Irish coast. Only 61 passengers were saved, including a man named Hugh Williams. On February 5th, 1898, a ship carrying 98 passengers sank. Only one person was rescued, and his name was also Hugh Williams. On February 5th, 1997, a ship with 24 passengers sank, and only one person survived. His name? Hugh Williams.
