Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation are hosting a Global Smurfs Day event in honor of Smurfs creator Peyo’s birthday (June 25, 1928). Of course, the event is also a way to stir up interest in their upcoming 3D/live action comedy film, The Smurfs, set for release in theaters on July 29th.
Here are the details straight from Columbia Pictures:
On Global Smurfs Day, as participants enjoy fun Smurf-related activities in cities worldwide, they will be invited and encouraged to come to the events in Smurf costume in an attempt to set a new Guinness World Records title for Largest Gathering of People Dressed as Smurfs within a 24-hour period in Multiple Venues. The events will be synchronized around the world – this will be the most Smurfs that have ever been gathered at the same time.
To achieve recognition from Guinness World Records the global events must collectively add up to more than 2,510 Smurfs. Adjudicators from Guinness World Records will be on hand in 12 cities around the world as it is expected that hundreds of participants in each city will come to the event dressed as Smurfs (white Smurf hat, white pants and shoes, and body painted blue). While all are being asked to arrive at the event in head-to-toe Smurf costume, each event will have Smurfs hats and blue T-shirts available.
Among the cities participating in the record attempt as part of Global Smurfs Day are Brussels, Belgium (Peyo’s home country); Athens, Greece; Scheveningen (The Hague), Holland; Dublin, Ireland; Mexico City, Mexico; Panama City, Panama; Warsaw, Poland; Moscow, Russia; Johannesburg, South Africa; New York, USA; and London, UK. Events include a Smurfs Experience in London as The O2 is turned into The “O-Blue” and a family event at New York’s “Smurf Street Blueport” (a/k/a South Street Seaport); also, Peyo’s family will be on hand to join in the fun in their home country of Belgium.
In addition, there will be Global Smurf Day events in many other locations around the world. For example, in Spain, the village of Júzcar, in the province of Malaga – one of the famous White Towns of Andalusia, renowned for their characteristic whitewashed walls – will kick off the celebrations by painting the entire town blue for the occasion. Life-size (that is, 7½-inch tall) Smurf figurines will inhabit Paris’s Trocadero Terrace (in front of the Eiffel Tower), the main square in Reykjavik, Iceland, Bogotá, Colombia’s El Dorado International Airport, and high-traffic areas in Geneva and Zurich, Switzerland.
In Taiwan, the landmark Red House will be transformed into a “Blue House,” populated by Smurf figurines. In Copenhagen, Denmark, the event will be at the Tivoli Gardens amusement park, where participants can enjoy face painting, dance-alongs, and more fun-filled events. And in Los Angeles, at Santa Monica Place, there will be a celebration of Peyo’s birthday with Smurfy activities.
