“The call is coming from inside the subway station…”
From When a Stranger Calls to Scream, the telephone has long been a popular device for delivering chills in horror movies. Now Netflix is utilizing a decidedly retro device – a public telephone – to promote the newest addition to its line-up, the 1980s-set suspense series Stranger Things.
The streaming video service has partnered with Pattison Outdoor on a new marketing initiative across several Toronto subway stations including Don Mills, Downsview, Bay, Spadina and Finch.
It features so-called “stranger phones” mounted to pillar wraps promoting the series. The telephones ring every three minutes, with people curious enough to pick up the receiver greeted by a frightening message pertaining to the show.
Dmitri Melamed, vice-president of production for Pattison’s in-house production agency Fourth Wall Media, said the campaign required the company to create custom-built units that operate without direct power for an extended period of time. The campaign runs until the first week of August.
The eight-episode Stranger Things debuted on Netflix this past weekend and is a critical favourite, with many of the reviews referencing 1980s sci-fi thrillers like Poltergeist and the works of horror master Stephen King.
The show is set in 1980s Indiana, and focuses on the search for a young boy who has disappeared. The search leads to secret experiments and a mysterious girl possessing super-human abilities.
