THE 14TH ANNUAL SHORTY AWARDS

The Shorty Awards honor the best of social media and digital. View this season's finalists!

Industry

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Strategy & Engagement

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Arcane: League of Legends S2 | Paint The Town Blue

Finalist in Organic Promotion

Objective

After a three-year wait, reigniting the Arcane fandom was no small task. While Arcane Season 1 became a global phenomenon through passionate fan engagement, the long gap between seasons risked cooling excitement. Our challenge was clear: make Arcane feel bigger than ever, reawaken fan passion, and bridge the worlds of League of Legends gamers and Arcane’s TV audience.

To meet this moment, we launched a community-focused platform centered around Paint The Town Blue: an organic social campaign designed to escalate anticipation, immerse the community in the Arcane universe, and transform the series' return into a must-watch cultural event.

Strategy

Our four-phase campaign turned passive anticipation into an interactive experience across Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and Facebook. Through a mix of hype-driven content, deep community engagement, and large-scale activations, we ensured Arcane Season 2 wasn’t just a return—it was an event.

Phase 1: Awakening the Community (June - July)
We reignited the fandom with a high-impact content rollout, including teaser drops, 10 striking character posters, and 30+ announcement posts. But this was more than a drip-feed—we actively engaged with fans, fueling speculation through real-time interactions, reshares, and responses. Global partnerships, exclusive merch drops, and talent-driven teasers amplified the buzz.

Phase 2: Paint The Town Blue (August - October)
To transform Arcane’s return into a viral moment, we launched Paint The Town Blue, a global social takeover that turned excitement into action. A month-long scavenger hunt led fans to unlock 21 new songs from the Arcane Season 2 soundtrack, while Arctober—a daily engagement challenge—kept community-driven content at its peak. We also worked with hundreds of Riot channels to "paint" their social profiles blue, then gave fans the tools to do it themselves—turning the takeover into a movement.

Phase 3: The Cusp of Premiere (November 1 - November 8)
With momentum at a fever pitch, we elevated the hype through our support of cultural touchpoints, including live performances at the League of Legends World Championships, the premiere of Ashnikko’s music video, and the return of Ambessa as The Wolf of Arcane.

Phase 4: Eventizing the Release (November - December)
Each episode drop became an event, not just a release. We created special moments to bring fans and talent together at premiere events, shaped pre-watch speculation, guided fans through key narrative moments, and amplified discussions, ensuring every twist and turn was felt across the community.

Results

The campaign’s organic strategy turned fan anticipation into a cultural movement, driving record-breaking engagement:

The result? Arcane Season 2 reached Netflix’s Global Top 10 in 91 countries, with its finale sparking massive engagement and pulling fans deeper into the League of Legends universe.

Three years in the making. Six months of momentum. One unforgettable final season. Arcane painted the town blue.

Media

Video for Arcane: League of Legends S2 | Paint The Town Blue

Entrant Company / Organization Name

We Are Social U.S., Riot Games

Links

Entry Credits