On Lucia Day last year, police in Bergslagen, where Dalarna, Värmland and Örebro counties belong, released a video on each county’s Facebook page.
Four parked police cars and a firetruck drive an inexplicably synchronized blue light show into the driveway in a patchworker version of Jingle Bells. We’re talking about an absolute sense of rhythm. And millions of views.
In the nearly 16,000 comments generated by the clip, there are three basic categories of people: a happy person who wants to return Christmas greetings; A tech expert who explains how it happened. And bewilderment wondering how this is possible. The police answer the last question that “dog trainers have a good sense of rhythm.”
– It was so much fun that people thought there were mates in every car, so we let people believe that for a while. But then we got cold, we police, we can’t handle lying, says Lars Heidelin who made the movie (Watch it by clicking here).
‘Hours didn’t burn’
There was also another small category, those who wonder if the police had nothing better for them.
– So there were no sitting colleagues burning working hours here. The most expensive thing was to buy the rights from the record company. But it didn’t cost a lot of kroner.
There are certain atoms of truth. These are dog handlers cars. But for an hour Lars Heidelin and his colleague photographed cars with different types of lights on. Then I waited in the editing room.
– What you need is a little sense of rhythm. You can put bass clips and treble peaks into a music program, then flash 0.3 seconds on each treble. This is how you keep building. It’s like lego.
Why shunter?
– You need steady music that you can put up against flashing lights. And then it should be a Christmas song. I searched quite a few before I found this version. He sat like a rock.
What does this mean for the police?
All we do is connect with people and build trust. Without the public’s trust, we are nothing. We often associate it with misery. The fire brigade are always heroes. The police are more controversial. Then it’s good to show that there’s humor, too. It can also attract more people to the profession. And internally, everyone seems to have seen it. So there was some performance anxiety this year.
New greetings on Lucia’s day
On this year’s Lucia Day, a new Christmas greeting signed by Lars Heidelin will be released. He says he has a completely different atmosphere.
How does Christmas stand out for a police officer?
That more people feel uncomfortable during the big holidays. It’s even more difficult for many when you see that everyone is sitting with their families. But otherwise, it doesn’t feel like much with Christmas. The police are on duty 24/7, and the community’s back is on any day.
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