This way cool live-action version of the opening sequence of The Simpsons might be a little less cool now that we know what it's about. It turns out, the video is part of a viral marketing campaign by UK broadcasting network, Sky. The network and its ad agency created the dead-on, live-action video as part of an on-air promotion for The Simpsons. They even had the blessings of Simpsons producers and creator Matt Groening. The ad gurus thought it was so cool that they decided to launch it on the internet and just let word-of-mouth go to work for them. Obviously, they were successful. The video is huge right now. And, unlike NBC, Sky has no plans to pull it from the 'net.

Eliot over at Hackaday found this super cool clip on YouTube. It's the opening sequence of The Simpsons, but done entirely in live action. Before I clicked over to it I wondered, 'how in the world are they going to pull that off?' Actually, they pull it off quite well, using some awesome editing techniques to maintain the frantic pace of the animated sequence. Also, notice the keen attention to detail, such as the real-life versions of the twins Sherri and Terri in the bandroom sequence.

(Embedded player after the jump)