Tonight’s episode of “American Idol,” which airs at 9:00-10:00 p.m. ET live/PT tape-delayed on FOX, will feature this new element in a video segment.

All of the Idols’ Fiestas will be on display at www.americanidol.com. From March 17 through May 21, 2010 fans 18 and older can enter the Ford Music Video Challenge weekly for a chance to win one of the vehicles and a trip to the set of a Ford Music Video shoot or the grand prize, which includes a Fiesta with their choice of one of the Top 12 designs and tickets to the finale. Official rules and entry details are available at www.americanidol.com/ford/challenge.

“Idolizing” the Ford Fiesta

Ford began the design process by giving each of the top 12 contestants a palette of nine Fiesta colors to choose from, including vibrant shades like Lime Squeeze, Blue Flame and Bright Magenta. So the design team could get to know each contestant on a more personal level, the Idols also were given a personality survey to fill out with questions like, “What are the three things you are most passionate about?” and “What do you want your car to say about you?”

Four up-and-coming Ford designers – Dillon Blanski, Gustavo Bizyk, Lesli Ann Agcaoili and Dean Carbis – reviewed the questionnaires, traveled to Hollywood to meet with the Idols, and then helped each contestant develop the concept for his or her personalized Fiesta, using color, custom body graphics, wheel treatments and other accessories to transform the vehicle into an expression of each contestant’s individuality.

Tuxedo Black was a popular color choice among the male contestants while the girls seemed to favor more vivid shades like Bright Magenta and Lime Squeeze. Some of the contestants even opted to accessorize their Fiesta with a four-piece 3dCarbon body kit.

If I Can Dream is a new generation of post-reality entertainment and represents a new Hollywood that offers open, global access.

Created by Simon Fuller, If I Can Dream will document the authentic stories of “attractive” individuals who dream of success in Hollywood. You can be part of those stories in real time, as 3 actors, a musician, and a model pursue their dreams: living together in a house in the hills, their every struggle and triumph is streamed online and presented on Hulu.

Three Fiestas are hitting the road with with the cast of “If I Can Dream”.

“This is the perfect way for people across the country to connect with the Fiesta and the ‘If I Can Dream’ artists,” said Connie Fontaine, Ford Brand Content and Alliances manager.

Fiesta serves as the “sixth bedroom” of the show – it’s the artists’ primary way of transportation, and it is outfitted with three cameras so they can talk about their experiences through livestreaming.

Their lives are captured and streamed online in real-time, 24/7 on www.ificandream.com. The show is also available for TV viewers exclusively on Hulu, a Web site offering popular TV shows and movies from commercial networks.

Catch weekly episodes on Hulu: http://www.hulu.com/if-i-can-dream

Do you have what it takes to make it in Hollywood?

Through a global online audition platform on MySpace, the If I Can Dream opportunity is open to people who aspire to pursue their own Hollywood dreams.

Watch auditions and vote for the best at
myspace.com/ificandream

A new site has been launched at FiestaMovement2.com where you can follow news, updates, and events of the 20 teams spread across the country.

Agents will complete a series of missions, where they will compete in challenges locally that leverage the best of their communities, allowing them to open the discussion about Fiesta through social media and beyond.

“This was a natural progression from the first phase of the Fiesta Movement,” said Connie Fontaine, Ford Brand Content and Alliances manager. “Chapter 2 will still be rooted in social media, but this time the content will also live offline and find its way into new mediums. Fiesta needs to clearly be the star now as the agents share their work within their communities and beyond.”

It is great to see friends and familiar faces amongst the teams. I am glad they were able to incorporate location based services into the movement, an amazing opportunity I had brought up to them in the past when FourSquare was in their infancy.

Followers of Fiesta Movement Chapter 2 will play a pivotal role in this adventure, by checking in with their favorite agent team, snapping a picture of the content they saw on the streets or commenting on what the agents post to social media sites.  I would expect a more active role from teams to get their communities involved with projects. Communities will be able to participate and view Fiesta Movement 2 projects in their local neighborhood offline in addition to a purely online social media presence.

There should be some amazing things to come from Ford’s Fiesta Movement 2 and look forward to it.

You can follow one of the LA Teams, Beto and Sebastian here:

http://www.fiestamovement2.com/los-angeles/team-profile/team-los-angeles

Introducing Fiesta Movement Chapter 2 Agents

Derek Dow and Christopher Adams – Chicago
Derek is an agent from the first Fiesta Movement, and embodies the lifestyle of the Fiesta brand. Christopher has produced four Grammy-nominated songs and is the first African American recipient of the 3D Hall of Fame Award.

John Preskitt and Aaron Enequist-Leiker – Chicago
John developed his own “green” apparel line and Aaron has Web and design capabilities.

Samuel Graber and Jen Friel – Los Angeles
Samuel was a writer and producer for “The Drew Carey Show” and other top reality TV shows. Jen is tied to her local art, music and entertainment scene and understands the importance of social marketing.

Beto Lopez and Sebastian “St. George” – Los Angeles
Beto is an agent from the first Fiesta Movement, who is a local event organizer with heavy connections in the hip-hop and break dance scene. Sebastian is also from the first Fiesta Movement and is CEO of Yoga Army, a unique women’s clothing line.

Vanae Tran and Fran Larkins – San Francisco
Vanae is a life and dating coach who parallels her passion into a blog and daily Web show with a following of 19,000. Fran is a project manager who went so far as to writing a haiku for his application for Chapter 2.

Laris Kreslins and Kendra Gaeta – Philadelphia
Laris is a creative director and business development manager who was the brains behind the Toyota Yaris DIY launch. Kendra works in advertising, and has a strong passion for the art and music community, with a strong online presence.

Tim Quirino and Michelangelo Ilagan – Philadelphia
Tim is a freelance graphic designer with two personal blogs and deep ties to the music scene. Michelangelo is a Web designer who spends time checking out the foodie hot spots in Philadelphia.

Shirley Braha and Peggy Wang – New York City
Shirley is a producer and creator of the TV show “New York Noise” and is very connected to the blogger and underground music scene. Peggy plays in a popular indie rock band and is a noted fashion icon as well as professional blogger for buzzfeed.com.

Monica Lo and Caitlin-Marie Miner – New York City
Monica is an art director who is extremely involved in social media and chairs industry tweetups. Caitlin is a digital animator with an effervescent personality.

Parker Reddington and Nathan Finn – Seattle
Parker is a studio engineer and producer for a recording studio who has produced more than six records and 50 shows and is very involved in the hip-hop scene. Nathan is an emcee who is well connected in Seattle, and enjoys free styling.

Keith White and Joshua Rogers – Denver
Keith started his own graffiti company at a young age, and is very influential in the art scene in Denver. Joshua is a well-known Denver graffiti artist who is currently a student.

Shane Ford and Jerry Wald – Detroit
Shane is the co-owner of The Work, a photography and video art house. Jerry is the owner of the Detroit clothing store Zeitgeist, who is a renowned photographer for musicians, actors and other prominent figures.

Austin Baker and Sunny Thaper – Phoenix
Austin is a creative director and created his own auto blog, www.62mph.com. Sunny is creative and socially connected, and hosts several tweetups to congregate friends and followers in the Phoenix area.

Jana Hicks and Satchel Jester – Atlanta
Jana is a producer at Metromix, is extremely excited about social networking and has vast experience in the entertainment and music scene in Atlanta. Satchel operates his own public relations firm, and has a keen eye for fashion design and event hosting.

Alyssa Gardina and Colin Alsheimer – Dallas
Alyssa is a marketing associate who is incredibly involved in networking herself on a professional and social level and regularly attends tweetups. Colin is a marketing manager who leads weekly podcasts and is a speaker at many marketing conventions.

Mark Baratelli and Dan Ginader – Orlando
Mark is an improv actor at one of the top theaters in Orlando and toured as an actor with Jesus Christ Superstar. Dan works at the Orlando Sentinel and produces all the creative and events for www.thedailycity.com.

Jonathan Paula and Jory Caron – Boston
Jonathan has the 65th most subscribed YouTube channel and is a director and producer at Ideo Productions. Jory works full-time on his YouTube projects for his sketch comedy show called Righteous TV and spends his free time enjoying the music scene in Boston.

Daniel Alvarez and Carlos Lange – Miami
Daniel curates art events in Miami, with his own art showcased in galleries in Miami. Carlos is a graphic designer and is very passionate about the local arts scene and has collaborated with a number of local artists on side projects.

Amber Roussel and Mark Austin – Houston
Amber is co-creator of AH!HA! Creative, specializing in advertising, social media and design, and is also a freelance photographer. Mark is a freelance photographer working with clients such as Rolling Stone, MSN, the Kentucky Derby and the Houston Astros.

David Brown and Zach Nielsen – San Diego
David is an entrepreneur and self-described tech-geek who develops his own blogs, Web sites and events. Zach runs a local nonprofit in San Diego promoting local artists and musicians. He regularly hosts music events and pop-up art shows, a top online radio program, and is very tapped into the music, art and surf scene.

The new production-based Ford Fiesta rally cars were fastest all week, so it came as no surprise that the Ford Fiesta dominated Sunday’s X Games Rally Competition Finale, claiming two spots on the podium and three of the top four overall in the car’s debut appearance.  Kenny Brack, the 1999 Indianapolis 500 winner, driving the Olsbergs Motorsport Evolution Ford Fiesta, captured the gold medal at X Games 15, defeating 2008 champion Travis Pastrana in the Super Special Rally Final. Brack’s teammate Tanner Foust captured the bronze medal in the ROCKSTAR Fiesta, narrowly losing a thrilling semi-final match-up with Brack. Brian Deegan, the Motocross star turned rally racer, finished fourth overall when he lost a turbo hose on his ROCKSTAR Fiesta during a semi-final match-up with Pastrana.

When leaving the Home Depot Center I pulled up to a light next to a Subara WRX, he wanted to race. We both revved our engines and I held up the #1 finger as we both laughed. I let him speed off leaving me in the dust. Now only if I had the rally car version it might be a different story.

Some shots of mine throughout the day. (Photographs by Jonathan Nafarrete)

Two Ford Fiestas head to head.

Tanner Foust

The winner! FIESTA 1

You are taken to a micro site for the Ford Fiesta. There are more graphics of the Ford Fiesta as well as an interesting “lifestyle” video. Screen grabs below.

Frame from video. It says “Dazzling Good Looks”! LOL

Swedish Olsbergs Motor Sport Evolution (MSE) team has announced it will compete in ESPN’s X Games 15 in Los Angeles, Calif., July 30 – August 2. Olsbergs MSE is entering the race with the famous Swedish driver Kenny Brack. The team will also field two Ford Fiestas for ROCKSTAR Energy Drink with drivers Tanner Foust and Brian Deegan. All three Fiestas will comply with Rally America Open Class specifications.

Ford just kicked off a partnership for the Fiesta Movement with the popular online gaming site OMGPOP!   OMGPOP just released Hover Kart – it’s like the old Mario Kart, very fun. They have hidden a Ford Fiesta in the game for you to unlock and race with!  Now you and your friends can race Fiesta’s online…enjoy!

To get it your Fiesta racing, you have to first register on the site at www.omgpop.com (if you are not already a member).

Another fellow agent put together a nice mission video of her helping build and race the Ford Fiesta within Hover Kart.

Ford wants to generate buzz for the Fiesta, which will bring Europe’s “small cars can be cool” ethos to America when it arrives next year. But rather than hand a bunch of them over to mainstream journalists, Ford broke with tradition by inviting dozens of 20-somethings to live with the car for six months and tell the world about it.

Link to article: http://blog.wired.com/cars/2009/04/how-the-fiesta.html

Sarah Austin’s Twitter: http://twitter.com/pop17

The latest attempt is just getting under way at Ford Motor Co. The company has picked 100 young, Web-savvy drivers to get behind the wheel of its new Ford Fiesta subcompact for six months and post their impressions on sites such as YouTube, Flickr and Twitter.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123915162156099499.html