If you’re one of the 2.7 million (as of now) people who have already seen this #ShareaCoke viral video of a couple’s (very) creative pregnancy announcement, you know how good it is. If you haven’t seen it, watch it now. We’ll wait….
Ok, good.
Patrick and Whitney McGillicuddy (love that name) created the video to announce their impending bundle of joy and it blew up the internet. It’s creative, funny, and a fantastic way to share the exciting news. We reached out to the happy couple for a little background on the video and how it came to be.
Here’s their interview with Dads Who Diaper.
How did you come up with the idea?
We had been tossing around a couple ideas like spoofing the Rocky Training Montage but using baby stuff or practicing baby activities on our Corgi “The Toast”. Ultimately, it all felt played out and done before. Then, the day after our first ultrasound I grabbed a Diet Coke on my way to work. Looking at it, I saw that the can read, “Dad”. Not knowing how popular that can was at the time, I thought, “What are the chances!” and, “How in the world am I going to find a ‘Mom’ can?” Immediately I knew that it would be super fun to shoot a video where my wife, Whitney, and I took on the voice of whatever name was on each can. I took a photo and sent it to my wife telling her, “I’ve got a fun idea for our video…” and the rest is history!
You clearly have some production/editing experience, how long did it take to create from start to finish?
I’m flattered! All together it took about 3 hours to shoot and edit. We’ve done a lot of videos for fun in the past but this one was particularly fun since I got to tap into all of my Marketing/Management knowledge from my college days.
How did you pick the lines to recite in the video?
Some were easy choices, like Arnold since he’s so easily recognizeable others we’re some that we just really liked. The Office is one of our favorite shows and it was Whitney’s idea to use that particular Michael Scott clip. Oddly enough, most people assume the first voice that I take on is my wife’s voice (which would have been smart) but it’s not. It’s actually Amy Pohler’s character, Leslie Knope, from another one of our favorite shows, Parks and Rec.
With over 2.5 million views (to date) are you surprised it went viral?
Totally surprised! Still surprised! We were aiming to put our best foot forward in making a creative way to share the news with friends and family. We had no idea that it would ever take off the way it has.
How did the grandparents like it?
They love it, of course. Although currently we’re in the process of trying to steal Whitney’s parent’s attention away from their newly born grandson.
What are you most nervous about becoming a dad? Most excited?
I think most of my emotions fall on the excited side. I work as a Kids Pastor (birth-5th grade) at large church in Los Angeles called the Church at Rocky Peak. I’ve gotten such unique and amazing opportunities to watch kids grow through so many life stages! Not that anything could actually prepare you for having a child of your own, but I think it’s instilled confidence in both myself and my wife by giving us at least a glimpse into what the future holds. I think any reasonable parent to be knows that they don’t have it all, or even most of it figured out, and that can be a scary thing! But at the same time, I am so looking forward to shaping and influencing the life of my son or daughter more than anything!
Has Diet Coke reached out, any special offers?
They have! Yesterday I got a call from our receptionist telling me that, “Coca-Cola is here and they’d like to talk to you.” To my surprise, the Diet Coke team had come by and dropped of 360 bottles of soda to help us name our future child!
Congratulations and here’s to a happy and healthy baby McGillicuddy is 2015!
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