Hasta La Ideas

Yet another pet video is going viral on Facebook, but this time it’s not something furry doing something cute; it’s a reptile doing something visually awesome. An unnamed offscreen puppetmaster puts his chameleon through the paces, and if you haven’t seen this yet, it’s quite the sight:

Here’s the problem: The video’s a fake! It’s a four-year-old advertisement for Ray-Ban, done by ad agency Cutwater, to promote their then-new color lines; CG overlays provide the rapid color change. The actual pace at which a chameleon changes color does not make for compelling viewing, which is why the Ray-Ban fake video has 7-million-plus hits and relatively lethargic YouTube footage of chameleons really changing can’t seem to crack the six-figure barrier.

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