Digital Rebel With A Cause Sends Message to Global MTV Audience:
“Play With The World”
London, Wednesday 22nd January 2009 – MTV Networks International (“MTVNI”) today unleashed Cherry Girl on an environmentally ambivalent world. On a mission to discover and share the pleasures contained within the smallest actions in everyday life, Cherry Girl is a new heroine for the multi-platform age.
Mischievous, rebellious, seductive, intriguing and hedonistic, Cherry Girl takes pleasure in the world around her. Her everyday actions result in small yet positive and impactful effects on her immediate environment and provide inspiration for young people around the globe to undertake similar actions in real time.
The launch of Cherry Girl is part of MTVNI’s ongoing commitment to environmental issues through MTV Switch. Launched in June 2007, MTV Switch is a youth-focused, global, multiplatform campaign designed to inspire and promote environmentally-conscious lifestyles for MTV’s youth audience. MTV UK was the first MTV channel to launch a dedicated carbon calculator (http://www.mtvswitch.org/en/carbonCalc.shtml) designed specifically for use by 16-24 year olds. It calculates carbon usage based on consumption of equipment most used by young people and suggests ways to reduce emissions.
“We are particularly excited about Cherry Girl because her quirky and mischievous tendencies will appeal to youth, yet she is also conveniently a brilliant role model,” commented John Jackson, Director, Social Responsibility, MTV Networks International. “The beauty of her digital presence is that she can be truly interactive and accessible thereby maximising her real-world impact.”
Her blog, www.iamcherrygirl.com, will catalogue her exploits and adventures as she lives her life-philosophy and invites those around her to “play with the world”. Additionally Cherry Girl will inhabit a host of multi-platform environment to ensure that the youth audience can interact with her on a variety of levels. As well as a dedicated MTV website – www.mtvcherrygirl.com – which gives the MTV audience a gateway into her uniquely mischievous world, Cherry Girl will inhabit Twitter and Facebook.
“Cherry Girl hopes to redefine the interactive experience – taking the online ‘offline’ in order to connect with people and ultimately encourage social action,” added Jackson. “The essence of this initiative is about Cherry Girl encouraging people to do real life actions.”
Ridley Scott Associates (www.rsafilms.co.uk) has produced a 60-second short film to celebrate the launch of Cherry Girl on Earth Day. The short has been directed by Johnny Hardstaff whose previous credits include “Like Spinning Plates” (Radiohead), “Paint” (Orange) and “Basketballs” for Sony and will be broadcast globally on MTVNI’s 66 localised TV channels in 162 territories reaching 580 million households as well as being available on MTV’s websites.
Cherry Girl was created by The Scarlett Mark (Creatives – Kathryn Parsons and Richard Peters; Producer – Sandy Watson Scott; www.thescarlettmark.com). Over the coming year, The Scarlett Mark will work with MTV to further develop the Cherry Girl's character and her story across all online and offline channels.
Find Cherry Girl at the following sites from Wednesday 22nd April 2009.
www.iamcherrygirl.com
www.mtvcherrygirl.com
www.twitter.com/iamcherrygirl
www.mtvswitch.org
Notes To Editors
About MTV Networks UK & Ireland - MTV Networks is the largest television network in the world and a leading creator of programming and content across all media platforms, with 166 channels and 350 digital media properties reaching more than 578 million households in 162 countries worldwide.
In the UK, MTV Networks UK & Ireland operates 3 channel groups – Comedy, Kids and Music. The 10 branded music channels comprise of MTV One, MTV One+1, MTV Two, MTV Base, MTV Dance, MTV Hits, MTV®, VH1, VH1 Classic and TMF. The channels showcase the best in music programming alongside popular entertainment shows such as Pimp My Ride, My Super Sweet 16, The Hills, Punk'd and Cribs.
Comedy Central and Nickelodeon in the UK are part of the MTV Networks International portfolio of channels through joint ventures with BSkyB.
MTV Network's music channels are available on Sky, Virgin Media and Freeview.
In addition, MTV Networks is a pioneer in the world of digital media, winning awards for its interactive and online services, as well as being the first media company to offer made-for-mobile 3G video content.
MTV Networks is a unit of Viacom.
About MTV Switch - Launched on 14 June 2007, MTV Switch is a youth-focused, global, multi-platform campaign designed to promote environmentally-friendly lifestyles. Core to its ethos is that small actions taken by many individuals make big differences. The campaign draws on the energy and creativity of youth to make innovation a hallmark of its identity. Through public service announcements (PSAs), television programming and online resources, the campaign aims to engage our audience around the issues in ways that strive to be fresh, relevant and resonant.
For more information visit the dedicated website http://www.mtvswitch.org/.