Covid 19 coronavirus: the disturbing video of silent Auckland is a surprise worldwide success

A haunting video celebrating the silence of our largest city in the Covid-19 bull run has become the world’s biggest hit on the Visit Auckland YouTube channel.

Papatūānuku is breathing, narrated by Manawanui Maniapoto Mills, 11, touring Auckland’s natural landscapes as human activity nearly stopped during shutdown.

“Stop, listen, Papatūānuku, mother earth is breathing, Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland is still,” he begins.

“Outside you, our kererū, now we don’t need to fight the daily buzz of our busy lifestyles.”

And at the end: “Dream, plan and when the time is right we welcome you, but for now listen, Papatūānuku is breathing.”

CEO of Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (Ateed) destination Steve Armitage said the message of the video was “designed to be simple: This is a time of rest; take a moment to appreciate the stillness and beauty of our region. “

“We hope the video is encouraging for the kiwis to enter their third week of confinement,” he said.

“The message is positive and relaxing, presenting through a completely different lens the sacrifice that people are making to prevent the spread of Covid-19. We hope this video provides a real boost to our communities and beyond.”

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The two-minute video has been viewed more than 500,000 times on different platforms, with 397,000 views in five days on Facebook alone, plus 7,600 shares and a potential reach of 1.2 million.

It is also Ateed’s highest performing video on Visit Auckland YouTube channel with over 100,000 views, and has been translated by two viewers into French and Spanish.

Armitage said that other destinations around the world have created exhibition videos in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, so Ateed wanted to come up with something that was solely Auckland.

• Official site: covid19.govt.nz.