This article revealed that the pirate puppet videos and the treasure hunt were created and masterminded by two guys in New York City who wanted to get more attention for their puppetry.
The idea of hiding treasure isa surprisingly well-established technique to inspire a thorough digestion of a work of art; there is nothing like the prospect of monetary reward to make people pay attention to details. One of the inspirations for the project was the three-decade-old children's book, "Masquerade," by Kit Williams, which contained elaborate illustrations that mapped out the route to a jeweled gold figurine buried somewhere in the English countryside.
The historical perspective is interesting:
The trailers for the project and a news release they issued have been generally greeted with skepticism in the blogosphere. The artists said they expected the suggestion that the whole thing was a hoax, given that the only public explanation so far has come from puppets.Some initially suspected that the treasure hunt was put on by the New York Board of Tourism or as an Alternate Reality Game promoting some Hollywood movie. Episode 3 ("The Larry King") is a hilarious satire of the media as well as the skepticism. It might be my favorite episode for pure entertainment value.
The article is currently the only behind-the-scenes peek on the treasure hunt. Maybe once the treasure has been found, the puppeteers will come forward and describe the making of this fiendishly difficult and fiendishly entertaining puzzle.
