Europe, The Americas



Eagle-eyed viewers were left somewhat confused by the sudden appearance of Iceland in a tourism video for Rhode Island.

The Harpa Concert Hall made an unexpected appearance in the video.

The Harpa Concert Hall made an unexpected appearance in the video. Image by Shutter Runner / CC BY 2.0

The Rhode Island Commerce Corporation was forced to pull the video after realising one of the first shots of a skateboarder was actually filmed outside the Harpa Concert Hall in Reykjavik. Ironically, the voiceover during the scene narrates about imagining “a place that feels like home, but holds enough uniqueness that you are never bored”.

The video, part of a $5 million campaign, has been removed but was already shared extensively on social media, including by the Governor of Rhode Island, Gina Raimondo.

 

The Rhode Island Commerce Corporation explained the mistake was made by a local advertising company, who have since apologised and promised to fix the video. They later explained to the Journal that the footage is of a skateboarder from Rhode Island, which may explain the error.

It’s not the first time in recent months that a geographical error has embarrassed video producers. A recent campaign video for US presidential candidate Marco Rubio featured footage of a Vancouver sunrise while the voice-over explained ‘it’s morning again in America.”

Despite the Icelandic slip-up, both the footage of Rhode Island and Reykjavik look pretty spectacular!