London 2012 needs mascots!
Try out your imagination with this one… a mascot or two for the London Olympics 2012!
press release
The organizers of the London 2012 Olympic Games have announced the first stage of the search for mascots for the Games. Creatives are invited to register their interest through the Olympics business Web site.
Mascots are an important part of the Games’ branding — possibly all the more important for the London Games given the unpopularity of Wolff Olins’ much-derided 2012 logo. The Beijing Games this year had five mascots.
London 2012 Commercial Director Chris Townsend said: “Those of us lucky enough to go to Beijing this summer saw first hand the magic of the mascots - whether it was the soft toy version, entertainment at a venue or simply photo opportunities at the airport.
“They help set the tone for the Games and we’re very excited about kicking this process off. Fun and games aside, the mascot programme will be a key component of our licensing plan and will be a strong revenue driver as we seek to raise the £2bn required to stage a Games in 2012.”
Mascots are an important part of generating revenues for the event: they appear as toys, on clothing, in film and animations, as well as being used in computer games and for the overall branding of the Games. The Paralympic Games will have their own mascots.
Creatives have until November 21 to register their interest; a shortlist of suitable agencies will be made in December. Locog (the Olympics business organization) expects that the eventual successful agency or group of studios will work with the public in some way to develop the mascots.
Chris Townsend says: “‘This country is home to - in my view - the world’s best creative industry and this is an opportunity for them to play a key role in making the Games both memorable and a great success.”
October 31st, 2008 at 12:41 pm
I watched the last Olympic on my TV set in school back in Lagos, Nigeria.
Of the whole thing China, I think their application of Technology to complement and also exhibit the Chinese arts, culture and modernism made it a successful piece in the end.
To the London designers, I think you guys need to work in teams as opposed to “an individual contributor”.
Whatever you guys come up with, I want to assure you that the standard has been raised in Beijing and you guys have no option; “YOU MUST BEAT IT”.
The world is watching!