Boring Oat Milk launches new campaign featuring a 24/7 livestream of… oats growing
Just weeks after the nation tuned in to watch New Zealand’s latest rocket break through the stratosphere, another major launch has taken-off, this time from a family farm in South Otago. At T-minus 00:20:00, 5:00am NZT today, Boring Oat Milk declared all systems “go” for a livestream launch like no other from New Zealand’s Whiteside Farm.
Mission parameters: to capture a 24/7 broadcast of oats growing, from germination to grain formation – slowly, silently, for months.
In a world first in both agriculture and patience, a live camera has been set up in the middle of Whiteside Farm’s oat fields so viewers around the world can tune in at any time and experience the gripping reality of oat growth in real time, which is not a lot.
Oat farmer and self-professed oat obsessive Craig Whiteside says he’s pleased his picturesque fields are getting an extended moment in the limelight: “We’ve been growing oats here for decades, to some it may sound boring but we find it extremely exciting watching them grow. I didn’t really know what this live stream thing was at first, we’ve already got a good one up the road, I caught a huge trout there last summer.”
In an age obsessed with progress for progress’ sake, where billionaires are scanning the stars for signs of life and interstellar real estate opportunities, this is a fittingly humble operation involving solar panels, a few tripods and an impressive amount of determination.
From the first sprout to the final harvest in March, every moment of the livestream will unfold like an epic sporting event – if that sport involved no movement, no commentary, and no chance of anything dramatic happening, ever. Viewers can expect subtle shifts in light and wind, the movement of the clouds, and the kind of suspense only nature can deliver – very, very slow.
So spectators around the globe should grab their snacks, (porridge, anyone?) place their bets on which stalk might lean first, and then settle in for a gripping season of silent oat growth.
Somewhere behind the idea is Boring Oat Milk, the New Zealand brand on a mission to celebrate simplicity and the beauty of the humble oat.
Boring Oat Milk founder Morgan Maw says the livestream is a reminder that some of the best innovation can be slow and steady and doesn’t have to make a show: “There’s so much obsession with the grand and otherworldly; fast-paced launches that chase spectacle. But there’s beauty to be found in the unhurried and mundane, and oats have been showing us this for thousands of years. While the world looks to Mars, we’re looking to the South Island, and all that oats give us.”
She says everyone can benefit from a few hours of watching oats grow: “It’s a must-watch for anyone ready to rebuild their attention span, reconnect with the land and experience true calm in the form of thousands of gently waving oats. I’d say it’s New Zealand’s most important livestream since, well, ever.”
Adds farmer Craig: “If I’m honest, I think that sounds like a pretty darn good evening of viewing.”
Streaming now at boringmilk.com
Internal
Founder and Head of Brand: Morgan Maw
Production/Video
Creative Director: Holly Van Seventer
Director/DP/Post production: Aidan Rogers
Gaffer/Grip combo: John Hogan
Talent
Craig Whiteside (grower)
Emily Honey-Fergusson (Boring Territory Sales Manager)
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