How Mexico City's First Day of the Dead Parade Was Inspired by James Bond The Associated Press
go to original October 29, 2016

James Bond inspires Mexico City's Day of the Dead parade - BBC News(UnreadNews)

Mexico City held its first Day of the Dead parade on Saturday, complete with floats, giant skeleton marionettes and more than 1,000 actors, dancers and acrobats in costumes.

The impressive spectacle has never been a part of traditional Day of the Dead celebrations, however. Instead, it was born out of the imagination of a scriptwriter for last year’s James Bond movie, Spectre.

In the film, whose opening scenes were shot in Mexico City, Bond chases a villain through crowds of revelers.



Lourdes Berho, CEO of Mexico’s tourism board, said 135,000 people were expected to attend the real-life parade.

Movies, zombie TV shows, Halloween and even politics are fast changing Mexico’s Day of the Dead celebrations, which traditionally consist of quiet family gatherings at graves of loved ones, bringing them music, drink and conversation.

“When [Spectre] hit the big screen and was seen by millions and millions of people in 67 countries, that started to create expectations that we would have something,” Berho said.

“We knew that this was going to generate a desire on the part of people here, in Mexicans and among tourists, to come and participate in a celebration, a big parade.”

Mexico City authorities even promised that some of the props used in the movie would appear in the parade. The government board sponsoring the march called it part of “a new, multi-faceted campaign to bring tourists to Mexico during the annual Day of the Dead holiday”.

Read the rest at The Guardian

Related: Licence to Shoot: The Spectre Location Manager's Guide to Mexico City (The Guardian)

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