The latest viral video coming out of Costa Rica is beginning to make the rounds on the online social networks. At the former Aviarios del Caribe bird sanctuary near Cahuita, home to a new sloth rescue center, an orphan baby sloth comes down with a nasty case of mange. This condition necessitates a whole body shave and skin treatment, and the new viral video depicts just that. The tiny sloth is shaven with an electric razor, covered in butter, and swaddled in bandages that resemble baby pajamas. The poor creature is clearly confused and a bit terrified, and at the end of the clip he is placed in a crib where he embraces his sister for comfort.

This isn’t the first time a video made in Costa Rica featuring sloths has spread like the current wildfire in Mount Chirripo. The Costa Rica Star previously reported on the phenomenon prior to the debut of “Too Cute! Baby Sloths” on the Animal Planet cable network. These viral online videos are being watched by millions of people around the world, and the sloths aren’t the only subjects making videos made in Costa Rica go viral. Another Tico viral video currently logging in lots of views features a neat Superman trick filmed during a trip to Guanacaste.

A Matter of Social Psychology

One of the most widely watched viral videos in history, entitled “Charlie Bit My Finger—Again“, was deconstructed by Professor Jonah Berger from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania for the Wall Street Journal and Wired Magazine. According to Mr. Berger, some videos go viral due to the way they affect our non-rational emotions. In the case of videos featuring children like Charlie and his brother, we are mesmerized by the range of expressions they display. We are subtly engaged and stimulated by these videos; to the extent that they manage to produce physiological effects on us when we watch them. In other words, viral videos produce feelings and it is only human nature to want to share such feelings.

In the case of the baby sloth affected by mange; it appeals to our primal instincts as mammals to empathize and protect the young. We know about mange, but the sloth does not, and he’s confused. That hug at the end? That’s a sentiment the sloth wanted to transmit to his sister, and we would do likewise in that situation.

The Science Behind Wanting to go Viral

On the website of the esteemed publication Scientific American, a blog named PsiVid interviewed the producer of Too Cute! Baby Sloths to learn about the process of making a viral video. Not all viral videos are captured in haste or happenstance. There are many online videos featuring our sloths, but those produced and directed by Lucy Cooke are definitely going viral. Ms. Cooke is an experienced producer of video for the BBC and PBS, and she was working on a video about frogs when she discovered Aviarios del Caribe. She recognized the viral potential of the orphaned baby sloths and set out to film them, adding professional touches such as editing and the right music.

Ms. Cooke knows what makes us tick in terms of video appeal, and she confesses that she is not an accomplished camera operator, but she knows that marketing is half of the effort when going viral. Cute animals -particularly mammals- will always appeal to our visceral emotions, and one of the best ways to share our emotions is with visual aids. Not all of us are effective communicators, and thus by sharing video we are illustrating that we hope others feel the same way we do when we watch a particular scene.

Other Notable Viral Videos in Costa Rica

Carlomagno Alvarado is an online filmmaker who can be credited with purposely creating the first viral video in Costa Rica. Mango, as Mr. Alvarado is known to colleagues and friends, has done online video work for the National Liberation party during President Laura Chinchilla’s electoral campaign. He is now based in Ontario, where he produced one short named “The Curse of Sam Katan.”

In 2009, clinical psychologist William E. Paer Fairmont was recording a television show next to his daughter Jill for Teletica. A strong earthquake struck in the midst of the recording, prompting Mr. Paer to lose his composure and belt out an expletive, while his daughter commented on the tremor in a mixture of Spanish and English (she has spent considerable time in the United States). This particular video went viral due to Mr. Paer’s off-camera warnings for everyone to stay calm, when his voice clearly indicated that he was the least calm of all.

Filmmakers who work with animation know that light humor combined with whimsy is a surefire way to appeal to our inner feelings. Guillermo Ramos was a college student at Universidad Veritas when he produced Gringo Pinto, a cool animated short that shows what happens when a Tico gives directions to a perplexed American tourist.

Being firm and humorless in a deadpan way we can have an unintended heartwarming effect. At the time Mango Alvarado worked on President Chinchilla’s campaign videos, opposing candidate Luis Fishman released an online video with a unique message: “At least I’m not as bad as the rest [of the candidates].” The video looked like a TV commercial for soap, and its entertainment value captured the attention of Ticos online, but failed to give Mr. Fishman a political edge.

If you know of other cool viral videos made in Costa Rica, please let us know.