[ presentation & bio | workshop | poster (pdf) ]

PRANKS WITH A PURPOSE
A Report from the Front Lines of the New Creative Activism

Author, artist and grassroots publicist Andrew Boyd will explore the creative side of the new activism in this humorous and inspirational multi-media presentation. Taking participants on a 15-year journey—from sit-ins and guerrilla theatre to culture jamming, media pranks and viral campaigns—Andrew demonstrates how to add intelligence, humor and artistic savvy to any political campaign. This is a must-see for anyone working directly or indirectly toward social change.

A pioneer of viral activism, Andrew was one of the driving forces behind Billionaires for Bush and the Million Billionaire March. He founded, and for several years directed, the arts and action program at United for a Fair Economy. He is currently an adjunct professor at NYU and presents/performs around the country. His writing has appeared in the Nation, the Village Voice and several anthologies on recent social movements. Andrew is also the author of The Activist Cookbook, a source book on creative direct action, as well as several [ 1 | 2 ] books of political humor published by W. W. Norton.

Length: 1-2 hours. Fee arranged on case by case basis.

CULTURE JAMMING 101
A Hands-on Workshop in the Tactics & Techniques of Creative Action.

"Andrew's workshops are a huge hit at Ruckus action camps. His humor, incisive messaging, and unswerving commitment to high-quality production values, make him Ruckus' favorite go-to-guy for theatrical media stunts."
—John Sellers, Executive Director, RUCKUS SOCIETY

"Boyd is a master satirist...One of the most worthwhile and committed humorists working in America today."
—John Nichols, THE NATION

"For years Andrew has put his wit, creativity, and infectious energy at the service of the labor movement. Use him. He will not disappoint."
—Elise Bryant, Senior Fellow, GEORGE MEANY CENTER for LABOR STUDIES
[all reviews]

Nuclear Saints of America. Free Trade Cell Phone Drill Team. Corporate Soup Kitchen. Sweat Gear. Boston Tea Party Redux. 100 Musical Chairs. Billionaires for Bush. Enron Democracy Shredder. These are not punk bands you haven't heard of. These are artistic/organizing projects that the presenter, Andrew Boyd, has helped to carry out over a 15 year career. Workshop participants will analyze these efforts, learning how to adapt artistic strategies to support political action and education.

Together, we tease out the principles of effective creative action design, then apply them to the actions and campaigns that participants are currently engaged in.

The workshop explores:
• New approaches such as culture jamming, guerrilla theater, & media interventions.
• How to get high-concept / high production values on a low budget.
• How to use pranks and clever satire to get past corporate media filters.
• How to get your campaign to "go viral."
• How to invite open-ended grass-roots participation into actions and yet maintain artistic cohesion and a focused message.
• How to use the web as a tool for disseminating not just information, but ready-made organizing and message-making tools.

Excellent, funny and state-of-the-art audio-visual supporting materials will be used. Those who don't laugh on cue will be force fed dimpled chads.

Participants receive resource hand-outs, The Activist Cookbook, and other materials to take back with them into the field.

Flexible format: 2-8 hours; 10-100 participants. Fee arranged on case by case basis.