Global Art Contest Crowd Sources and Amplifies Ideas for the Future

TOKYO — (BUSINESS WIRE) — July 27, 2015 — Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) today announced the launch of the Toyota Dream Car Art Contest “Dream Car Collection” which will feature a deep dive into children’s creative ideas, bringing them to life via animation and “characters” that will act as the digital ambassadors to the contest. 93 pieces of artwork will be showcased on the campaign site ( www.dreamcar-collection.com) with a focus not just on pure artistry, but the actual essence of the idea behind the art. The way forward rests with our youth, and the Dream Car Collection will not only connect children across the world to share their ideas, but provide a deeper, tangible understanding of the ideas that are born from various social issues affecting our world.

To dig deep into the essence of children’s ideas, Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) partnered with creative agency Saatchi & Saatchi Fallon Tokyo to design the “Dream Car Collection” campaign. The “Dream Car Collection” site will house the best 93 dream car drawings and will be re-animated and brought to life to showcase the essence of the original idea that spawned the art. Visitors to the page will be able to see the various “dreams” in different countries around the world via a “Dream Map” that shows where each piece of art originated. The individual artwork is then featured on the site accompanied with video, and a “Did you know?” infographic will provide even further information around the essence of the idea. Starting today, new content will be uploaded everyday onto the site until August 25 so stay tuned for the “Handicap-friendly Cleaning Car,” “the Toyota Arctic Car” and much more. Some of the videos were actually created after the elements of the art were 3D printed. The printed artwork was then used to create a showcase video. The infographics, artwork and video content will be uploaded to the campaign’s Instagram, Facebook and Twitter pages for sharing.

The Toyota Dream Car Art Contest encourages children around the world to tap into their creativity and depict any car they can dream up and submit it to Toyota. Across the world, children under 15 submitted a drawing of their idea of a “Dream Car.”

Since the inception of Toyota’s Dream Car Art Contest, children around the world have depicted their car ideas based on societal, environmental, political, local and global issues affecting their lives. Markets around the world such as Vietnam and Thailand have even applied the art contest to their own educational curriculum. The contest has cultivated a culture of innovation and solution-based ideas, and the result has been a massive influx of new entries from various countries every year. Through Toyota’s thirst for innovation and dedication to craftsmanship, children around the world will have a chance to make their dreams come true through art and creativity.

Susumu Matsuda, General Manager, Marketing Division at Toyota commented that, “The Toyota Dream Car Art Contest is not merely a contest, but a chance for children around the world to share and showcase their innovative ideas for a car. Through the ‘Dream Car Collection,’ we hope to break down the art and amplify the essence of the idea that inspired it. We are thrilled that over 80 countries around the world have taken an interest in our contest and we hope to continue to grow the number of entries as we continue hosting the Toyota Dream Car Art Contest.”

In the spring of 2015, 93 works of art were selected from 81 countries and regions. Thirty World Winners plus their parents or guardians will receive a trip to Japan to participate in an awards ceremony in August 26th 2015 during which four additional awards will be announced per age category: Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Best Finalist.

About the Toyota Dream Car Art Contest:

Toyota Motor Corporation, has been hosting the Toyota Dream Car Art Contest since 2004. The initiative invites children under the age of 15 from all cultures to share ideas about the future of mobility by submitting drawings of their dream cars. Toyota believes in nurturing the creativity of the next generation of great inventors, thinkers and dreamers because every great idea was born in the glimmer of a dream. Toyota Dream Car Art Contest consists of two stages. The first is a series of regionally-held "National Contests." Winners from this stage are entered into the second stage "World Contest." The final awards will be announced at the Awards Ceremony to be held on August 26, 2015 in Japan.

About Toyota Motor Corporation

Supported by people around the world, Toyota Motor Corporation (TSE:7203) (NYSE: TM), has endeavored since its establishment in 1937 to serve society by creating better products. Toyota's vehicles are sold in more than 170 countries and regions. As of the end of Dec. 2014, Toyota conducts its business worldwide with 54 overseas manufacturing companies in 28 countries and regions. For more information, please visit  www.toyota-global.com.

Links / URLs:

Toyota Motor Corporation:  http://www.toyota-global.com/
Toyota Dream Car Collection:  www.dreamcar-collection.com
Toyota Dream Car Art Contest:  www.toyota-global.com/events/dream_car_art_contest/