Clown Hall HYPNOSIS 1.5 Million Dollars RIP-OFF

Chairman of Finance, Cr Stephen Mayne, when asked "who was responsible for approving the expenditure of $1.5 Milllion and what steps had been taken to prevent such abuse in the future" remained stunned and silent at last nights Council's Future Melbourne Committee meeting held on Tuesday, leaving Lord Mayor, Robert Doyle, to speak on his behalf.

The name Clown Hall being aptly used to describe the City Council.  The Council lives in fairy land. We would be  better off with Commissioners than this circus  of clowns whose only role is self adulation for stupidity, complacency, dinner parties and junkets. How many homeless could have been given shelter for this sum of money?

Hipsters hypnotised for $1.5m Melbourne Council advertising videos

• CHRISTOPHER GILLETT
• Herald Sun
• May 03, 2015 9:32PM

HYPNOTISING hipsters has cost the City of Melbourne $1.5 million.

The Town Hall has again come under fire over its spending, this time on a video marketing campaign called the Land of Inbetween.

Costing $3500 every second, the videos show young urban professionals being hypnotised so they can rediscover Melbourne.

Hypnotist Andrew Newton was flown in from ­Europe to guest star at a ­believed cost of $20,000. The rest of the money was spent on production and advertising.
It comes just weeks after the council was slammed for granting $20,000 on a choreographer to teach parking ­inspectors to dance.

The issue is likely to prompt further debate over excessive council spending, which Premier Daniel Andrews and Local Government Minister Natalie Hutchins warned against.

Melbourne City Council defended the project, saying it was within its $2.3 million ­marketing budget.
But the Herald Sun understands Lord Mayor Robert Doyle hated the initial pitch — along with many others — and the campaign had to be sent back to advertising agency DDB.

The million-dollar project was then almost canned before being re-edited and ­released online.
City of Melbourne spokesman James Talia said it was not unusual for a marketing campaign of this nature to be “tested and tweaked”.

Last night, the main video had just two likes and 837 views on the council’s official YouTube page.
The City of Melbourne said it had reached 54,000 people since launching.
Within council, the finished campaign is still divisive.

Councillor Richard Foster said it was hard to see where the value was for Melbourne, attracting one type of visitor who already lived here.

“Hypnotising hipsters may seem like an amusing thing to do, but it’s not when ratepayers’ money is used to pay for the experience. I really don’t think we need hypnosis, acupuncture or ozone therapy to attract people to Melbourne,” Cr Foster said.

In the council’s 900-word response, Mr Talia said: “Our marketing campaigns work.
“... We have a responsibility to our traders to do what we can to bring people into the city, especially in the colder months when there is usually a drop in traffic,” Mr Talia said.
Victorian branch chair of the Australian Society of Hypnosis, Dr Di McGreal, described the video as nonsensical, bizarre and wasteful.

“A city that can win the most livable city in the world shouldn’t have to hypnotise people to like it,” she said.

christopher.gillett@news.com.au